Tucker Carlson quits GOP: ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do’

[0:00] It appears Israel sealed the fate of Tucker Carlson as well. [0:03] For months, Republicans have been painting him as anti-Semitic. [0:09] And I will say on the right, I have seen more anti-Semitism in the last 18 months on the right. [0:16] It is being spread by loud voices, the most consequential of whom is Tucker Carlson. [0:27] I believe Tucker Carlson is the single most dangerous demagogue in this country. [0:31] Carlson says he is done with the Republican Party. [0:34] He says it puts the interest of Israel above those of its own citizens. [0:41] I would not support the Republican Party. [0:42] There's no chance I would support the Republican Party. [0:44] I'm not going to support the Democratic Party. [0:46] I don't know what I'm going to do. [0:47] But at this point, you know, how could you support, how could I or any American voter support a political party that's not loyal to the United States? [0:57] Group chat is back. [0:59] Tam, we're going two ends of the spectrum here, right? [1:02] And then it meets up at the top. [1:04] The horseshoe politics. [1:05] I think what's interesting is that Tucker has been at odds with the White House for many months, almost every time there's a foreign intervention. [1:13] But this one in particular seems to have pushed him over the edge in terms of how he speaks publicly. [1:18] I think that what is happening here with Tucker Carlson, with Ted Cruz, is various parts of what has been the Republican coalition, [1:26] figuring out what happens in a potential post-Trump reality and positioning themselves. [1:31] And there are flashpoints. [1:33] Israel is going to be a flashpoint. [1:34] It didn't used to be. [1:35] Republicans were all very pro-Israel. [1:37] That's not the case anymore. [1:38] And I think you're going to see it over abortion and other issues as well. [1:42] Yeah. [1:42] Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeting, Tucker's not the only one who's done supporting the Republican Party. [1:47] This is her, I think, on X. [1:48] There's a lot of us that are absolutely fed up and will not support a party that betrays its voters and country. [1:54] That doesn't mean we're turning into Democrats either. [1:57] But we are done with the America last Republican Party. [2:01] There's something going on here. [2:02] It's not just this issue. [2:03] If you think about this issue, you think about the war, you think about the Epstein files, [2:08] you have all of these activists on the right who voted for Donald Trump because of those three things. [2:12] And Tucker Carlson, maybe Marjorie Taylor Greene, are trying to tap into that. [2:16] The old political consultant here thinks it has a lot to do with 2028. [2:20] Yeah, 2028 and also where the public sentiment is. [2:23] I mean, when I went to look at the Pew Research polls, I was trying to figure out, okay, [2:27] what are the views of Israel right now based on the polling? [2:30] And in 2022, Republicans were at 27 percent with an unfavorable view of Israel. [2:36] Now they're at 41, which means it's almost doubled. [2:39] And meanwhile, Democrats, of course, we know in 2022, 53 percent. [2:43] Now they're at 80 percent. [2:45] So a Mamdani or a Tucker, they're speaking to the people who moved in this shift from 2022 to now. [2:51] Israel is what they're fighting right now. [2:53] But I think it's very important to say they're against any sort of foreign conflict. [2:57] I don't think it's just Israel. [2:59] I think it would be if we were obviously no one on the Republican side wanted us to be in Ukraine either. [3:04] So I think that's but I agree with Chuck in regards. [3:07] But he's not leaving over Venezuela. [3:09] Like it feels as though we're not at war. [3:11] I mean, that was like something very quick. [3:13] We don't have a lot of troops on the ground. [3:15] You know, we're not. [3:15] And anyway, I think that's a little bit different. [3:17] But I get your point. [3:18] I also think that Marjorie Taylor Greene and Tucker are trying to figure out a path in regards to 2028. [3:24] I think they're both testing the grounds of running. [3:26] But also one of the questions I have really for you is there are four or five potential Jewish candidates on the Democrat side that would run in 2028. [3:36] One of them, my dear friend, Josh Shapiro. [3:38] How does that happen? [3:39] I mean, they're like going trying. [3:41] The Dems are trying to go left of the left of the left of Israel. [3:43] This has relevance in Democratic and primaries for both parties in 2028. [3:48] When you have multiple people running, more than four or five, you can win the nomination with 30 percent. [3:53] Keep in mind, you just need that 30 percent. [3:55] And Tucker Carlson knows that. [3:56] Just to be clear, I think it's just given to what Tucker Carlson's been saying lately, Israel is the foreign country to which he appears to be referring there. [4:03] But is he right, whatever the driver may be, that there are a lot of other people that are out? [4:10] I think there's absolutely a problem for the Trump coalition. [4:13] And the reasons are real around opposition to another forever war. [4:18] And, you know, you win elections by addition, not subtraction. [4:20] And let's remember the last time you had a major split in the Republican Party, Bill Clinton won two presidential elections with less than a majority of the American people. [4:28] He won in 1992 with 43 percent and in 1996 with 49. [4:32] And the reason was Ross Perot. [4:34] And it allowed a Democrat to win with less than a majority. [4:37] And for a party, my own, that is struggling building a majority coalition, having that serious a split in the Republican one is a real opportunity. [4:46] It doesn't excuse us from redesigning and rebuilding the party into something more majoritarian. [4:51] But I'll tell you what, it's a problem if you're a Republican. [4:53] I would argue that Tucker Carlson already did not belong to the Republican Party because he belongs to MAGA. [4:59] OK, and that there in and of itself, you have the fracturing within the Republican Party. [5:05] But I would also argue that there's a fracturing within the Democratic Party. [5:08] I mean, you have the far left, the AOC people on this side. [5:11] You have the more moderates. [5:12] What we really need, and Tucker Carlson won't be joining this, and neither will Marjorie Taylor Greene, who also says she's leaving the Republican Party, are independents. [5:20] I mean, the majority of Americans are somewhere in the middle. [5:24] And I would beg politicians to try and find common ground somewhere in the middle and stop all this fracturing. [5:31] Tucker Carlson says he will not support Republicans. [5:33] It seems to be largely over issues surrounding Israel. [5:35] My question to you is, do you regret or welcome this move from Tucker Carlson? [5:40] Well, my party, to be the party of the majority, wants people to view us in a more positive way against our opponents. [5:49] And those opponents have entirely different views and ideas. [5:53] So I think that what Tucker didn't say, and I have not talked to him, are you going to vote? [6:00] Because when you have to place your vote, it somewhat changes your mind on who you're then going to vote for, and you can reassess that. [6:09] But, no, I don't want to redo anything with Tucker. [6:13] What I want to say is, is he's entitled to his opinion. [6:16] It's been a stormy romance, no doubt about that. [6:20] But there are people who find time to express opinions. [6:25] When it comes down to the battle, it will be a battle for which direction we go. [6:30] The American people know one party is headed one way, and the other party is headed another way. [6:37] And I'm proud to be a Republican. [6:39] And just very quickly, it's not all Democrats when it comes to the issues surrounding Israel either, is it? [6:44] I mean, Tucker Carlson, a very, very public critic of Israel, said this just over the last 24 hours about his support of the Republican Party. [6:53] Listen, how could I or any American voter support a political party that's not loyal to the United States that puts the interest of a foreign country above those of its own citizens? [7:03] Like, that's, you know, it's not possible to vote for people like that. [7:07] So, no, I'm out. [7:08] And if I'm out, then I think a lot of other people are out. [7:13] But that foreign country he is talking about is Israel. [7:15] Make no mistake about it. [7:16] Go ahead, David. [7:17] Yeah, John, you and I, this may not be terribly surprising to us who have watched sort of Tucker Carlson's evolution here, but just think about if you and I were having this conversation, I don't know, a few years ago, that Tucker Carlson just totally disowns any association with the Republican Party. [7:33] He's been a front man for the Republican Party for 35 years, I think he said. [7:38] And this is a dramatic development. [7:41] And so you are right, we are seeing this notion of Israel as a litmus test in both parties and whether or not members of the parties are seen as too supportive and that invites and sort of an insurgency and support from a wing of the party that is dedicated to opposition to Israel. [8:01] That is creating a real divide within each of these parties. [8:04] I think we see in the polling, this is a bigger, more pronounced problem right now on the Democratic side than it is on the Republican side, but it is there too, no doubt. [8:13] All right.