5 takeaways from Tucker Carlson's interview with Ted Cruz

Yahoo2 days ago

Pundit Tucker Carlson published a nearly two-hour interview with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Wednesday, during which the two conservative firebrands debated President Trump's foreign policy, the future of the Middle East and America's place in the world.
The conversation was decidedly contentious, at times deteriorating into shouting and insults, punctuated by a short clip Carlson published Tuesday evening showing him quizzing Cruz on Iran's population, which for hours drove social media buzz around the full interview's release.
Cruz went on the offensive Wednesday morning, blasting Carlson over his framing of their back-and-forth and urging listeners of his 'Verdict' podcast to listen to the full interview he granted the former Fox News host.
Here are five takeaways from the interview.
As he opened the interview, Carlson asked the Republican lawmaker why he has voiced support for regime change in Iran and potential U.S. military action to prevent the country from obtaining nuclear weapons.
The pundit needled Cruz about the benefit of the U.S. sending money to Israel as it fights Iran and suggested lawmakers on Capitol Hill are being influenced by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which raises money for Cruz along with many other lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
'Everyone is obsessed with Israel,' Cruz exclaimed as Carlson drilled down on the money in politics phenomenon, to which Carlson replied, 'I'm not obsessed with Israel,' before saying, 'I've never taken money from Israel, have you?'
Cruz conceded AIPAC 'raises a lot of money for me' and lamented the fact the lobbying group 'is not more effective' in Washington.
The Texas senator said he came to Congress with the explicit intention of being a staunch defender of Israel and expressed no regret about his posture toward Iran or other Middle Eastern entities that seek to harm the U.S. ally.
Carlson countered that AIPAC is effectively a 'foreign lobby' and suggested its influence could lead the U.S. into a costly war.
Carlson insisted during his conversation with Cruz that he believes in 'self-defense' and would support military action against a foreign government if it was trying to harm Trump.
After Carlson noted Cruz's stated belief that the Iranian government is trying to hurt Trump, Carlson asked him, 'Why don't you support military action right now against Iran?'
Cruz told Carlson that 'nobody disputes' the Iranians wish to harm Trump, to which the former cable news host said, 'I'm disputing it.'
'Did we land on the moon?' Cruz shouted back. 'What other conspiracy theories do you not believe, was 9/11 an inside job?'
Before moving on, Carlson said Cruz's 'logic train has a massive hole in it,' dismissing the senator's attacking him as a conspiracy theorist and saying he wasn't 'into the slurs, the antisemite stuff; I just don't like that. I'm telling you what I believe.'
The conversation took sudden and a tense turn after Carlson peppered Cruz on Iran's population, which the senator dismissed, calling the line of questioning 'snide.'
'You engage in reckless rhetoric with no facts,' Cruz said, admonishing the former cable news host whom he earlier called a 'brave' voice on issues like the coronavirus pandemic and immigration.
'I'm not calling for the overthrow of a government, you are,' Carlson said as Cruz pointed at him.
The Republican lawmaker later read a direct quote from Trump criticizing comments from Carlson and others questioning his strategy on the Middle East and advocating against U.S. involvement in Israel's war with Iran.
'I never attacked Donald Trump, I campaigned for Donald Trump,' Carlson shrugged, defending himself. 'I love Trump.'
The president criticized Carlson directly earlier this week, calling him 'kooky' over his comments on the Middle East and taking a dig at the former cable host, saying he should share his opinions on 'a television network and say it so that people listen.'
The commentator told Cruz he spoke to Trump this week and insisted 'I think we should be very careful about entering into more foreign wars that don't help us when our country is dying.'
After their debate about Trump's position on Iran, Carlson accused Cruz of 'presiding over' some of the country's biggest 'foreign policy disasters' in recent years, calling attention to the Republican's support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.
'You've been spending the last three years telling us that Vladimir Putin is evil and we're going to beat him with other people's children,' Carlson said, raising his voice. 'And you've never apologized for that.'
A seemingly irritated Cruz sat up in his chair and shot back, 'The number of falsehoods you lay out in one sentence is rather astonishing.'
'The war against Russia was caused by Joe Biden's weakness,' Cruz continued.
But Carlson was not satisfied.
'You supported the war,' he again asked him, insisting 'shouldn't you apologize?'
'You should apologize,' Cruz shouted at the pundit, before stopping himself and scoffing, 'I'm not going to engage in the demanding of apologies.'
Carlson has for years criticized U.S. involvement in the war in Ukraine and stirred controversy with an interview he landed with Russian President Vladimir Putin after launching his media company.
Carlson's conversation with Putin came during a reporting trip to Moscow, during which he praised the country's economy and infrastructure.
After Carlson published his interview with the Republican lawmaker, Cruz sought to discredit the pundit's framing of their conversation and criticized the former Fox host on a subsequent episode of his 'Verdict' podcast.
'Did a long interview w/ Tucker. He released a snippet playing a 'gotcha' on the population of Iran. I declined to play that silly game,' Cruz wrote on social media late Tuesday. 'WATCH the full 2-hr interview, where Tucker ATTACKS Trump, attacks the 'AIPAC lobby,' & falsely claims Iran is NOT trying to assassinate Trump.'
In a subsequent social media post, Cruz asked why Carlson 'refuses to acknowledge' what he called an 'indisputable truth' about the Middle East and U.S. foreign policy.
'Facts don't care about your feelings Tucker, and they certainly won't bend to your narrative,' the senator said.
Cruz released a new episode of his 'Verdict' podcast after the short clip of their back and forth on the population of Iran was published but before the full interview was released on Carlson's account on the social platform X.
'On foreign policy, Tucker has gone bat-crap crazy. He's gone off the rails,' Cruz said, arguing the pundit is misreading what the American people want from Trump.
'I think the American people want a president who's going to say, 'We will protect ourselves against people who want to kill us,'' he said. 'That's exactly what Donald Trump is doing.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Hashtags

#AmericanIsraelPublicAffairsCommittee

#Carlson

#Cruz

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Where US troops in Mideast are most at risk of Iran strike

The Hill

20 minutes ago

The Hill

Where US troops in Mideast are most at risk of Iran strike

The Big Story Tens of thousands of U.S. troops are within Iran's striking distance should President Trump decide to wade into Israel's conflict with Tehran and directly attack the country. © Alex Brandon, Associated Press More than 40,000 American service members and civilians — as well as billions of dollars in military equipment — are in the Middle East, spread out across bases in Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Those working in countries closest to Iran, including Iraq and Kuwait, would conceivably have only minutes to prepare for an incoming Iranian strike, a likely outcome should Trump order the U.S. military to join Israel's bombing campaign, experts say. 'If [Iran] had the ballistic missiles ready to go, those strikes could happen in under 15 minutes. Launched to target,' retired Col. Seth Krummrich, vice president at security consultancy firm Global Guardian, told The Hill. 'They move very quickly.' Israel last week unleashed a barrage of airstrikes on Iran that set off the largest conflict ever between the two regional adversaries, with Tehran responding with its own attacks. The war has threatened to pull in the U.S., which says it supports Israel's right to defend itself but has not directly involved itself in the bombing. Trump has not yet decided on possible American military action against Iran, telling reporters through his top spokesperson that he would make his decision within two weeks. But Iran has already threatened to directly attack U.S. forces should they enter Israel's war campaign, with the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warning Wednesday that 'Americans should know that any U.S. military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage.' Tehran's threats aren't idle, as the country has retaliated against Washington in the past, most notably in January 2020, when Trump in his first term ordered an airstrike that killed Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds Force. The strike, which happened as Soleimani traveled to Baghdad, prompted a swift response from Iran, which days later hammered Al-Asad Air Base in Iraq and another U.S. base in Erbil with 13 ballistic missiles. While no Americans were killed in the largest ballistic missile attack ever against U.S. forces abroad, more than 100 were later diagnosed and treated for traumatic brain injuries. Now, with Trump reportedly considering using the GBU-57 — known as the Massive Ordnance Penetrator or so-called bunker buster bomb — to damage Iran's Fordow nuclear enrichment facility, a similar attack from Tehran could soon be at hand. Read the full report at Welcome to The Hill's Defense & National Security newsletter, I'm Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. Essential Reads How policy will affect defense and national security now and inthe future: Trump: 'Hard' for Israel to stop strikes now President Trump said Friday it would be difficult for Israel to stop strikes on Iran at this point, a week into the intense conflict between the two nations and two weeks out from the president's decision on U.S. involvement. 'I think it's very hard to make that request right now,' he said when pressed about the Iranian foreign minister saying that the U.S. would call on Israel to stop airstrikes if Trump is serious about … Democrat: Trump 2-week Iran deadline 'not a bad thing' Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) tepidly praised President Trump on his handling of the ongoing military conflict between Israel and Iran, after the president said he would wait two weeks to decide whether to take direct action against Iran. 'The fact that we're not reading about a U.S. attack on Iran right now actually gives me a little bit of comfort,' the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee told independent … Israel, Iran trade strikes as Trump weighs US military involvement Israel and Iran traded strikes on Friday as President Trump weighs the possibility of U.S. involvement and European officials seek to revive nuclear negotiations with Tehran. Israel said it hit 60 Iranian aircrafts early Friday morning along with the headquarters of the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, which carries out nuclear weapons research, according to the Associated Press. Iranian media said Israel's … On Our Radar Upcoming things we're watching on our beat: In Other News Branch out with a different read from The Hill: DHS places new limits on lawmakers visiting ICE facilities The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is placing new limitations on lawmakers seeking to visit detention facilities, releasing guidelines in the wake of visits from Democrats that have turned confrontational. Members of Congress have the legal right to make unannounced visits to U.S. Immigration … On Tap Monday Events in and around the defense world: What We're Reading News we've flagged from other outlets: Trending Today Two key stories on The Hill right now: Senate parliamentarian knocks pieces out of Trump's megabill Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has ruled that several key pieces of the massive bill to implement President Trump's agenda run afoul of … Read more Supreme Court rules against FDA, EPA 12:30 Report is The Hill's midday newsletter. Subscribe here or using the box below: Close Thank you for signing up! Subscribe to more newsletters … Read more Opinions in The Hill Op-eds related to defense & national security submitted to The Hill: You're all caught up. See you next week! Thank you for signing up! Subscribe to more newsletters here