U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday dismissed recent criticisms from American journalist and longtime ally Tucker Carlson regarding the administration’s posture toward a potential war with Iran.
Speaking at the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, Trump was asked by a reporter about Carlson’s claim that the president is complicit in escalating tensions. Trump responded sharply:
“I don’t know what Tucker Carlson is saying. Let him go get a television network and say it so that people can listen.”
Earlier that day, Carlson appeared on former Trump advisor Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast, where he warned that escalating military action against Iran could mark the downfall of both Trump’s presidency and American global influence.
“I think we’re gonna see the end of the American empire, obviously. Other nations would like to see that, and this is a perfect way to scuttle the U.S. on the shoals of Iran. But it’s also going to end, I believe, Trump’s presidency—effectively end it,” Carlson said.
On Friday, following Israeli strikes against Iranian targets, Carlson sent a newsletter to supporters titled “This Could Be the Final Newsletter Before All-Out War.” In it, he accused Trump of being complicit, writing:
“While the American military may not have physically perpetrated the assault, years of funding and sending weapons to Israel—which Donald Trump just bragged about on Truth Social—undeniably place the U.S. at the center of last night’s events. Washington knew these attacks would happen. They aided Israel in carrying them out. Politicians purporting to be ‘America First’ can’t now credibly turn around and say they had nothing to do with it. Our country is in deep.”
Carlson also accused Trump of betraying his “America First” voter base by backing Israeli military actions, a stance that contradicts the non-interventionist foreign policy platform Trump has long championed. The former Fox News host has been a key figure among Trump’s supporters, making his public dissent especially notable.
Other prominent Trump allies, such as Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, have criticized the broader conflict but have so far refrained from directly blaming Trump.
Over the weekend, Trump gave an interview to The Atlantic in which he attempted to reassert his political brand amid the backlash. Responding to accusations that his stance contradicts “America First” principles, Trump falsely claimed he coined the term and asserted that he alone defines what it means.
Late Monday Trump would once again take a shot at Tucker, going onto Truth Social where he stated, “Someone please explain to Kooky Tucker Carlson that “IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!”. While also posting that “America First” also means that Iran couldn’t have a nuclear weapon.