Republicans push back after Tucker Carlson’s interview with Nick Fuentes
Far right influencer Nick Fuentes has always made headlines for his racist and antisemitic views. His recent comments have sparked blowback from within the conservative ranks.
Who is Nick Fuentes?
The 27-year-old white supremacist, as labeled by the FBI, is the host of “America First with Nicholas J. Fuentes,” which has been banned from most social media and podcasting platforms due to hate speech.
Here’s a list of just a few things Fuentes has said in the past.
· Called Adolf Hitler “awesome”
· Repeatedly denied the Holocaust happened
· Claimed Jews have no place in Western civilization
· Claimed “organized Jewry” is attempting to extinguish the white race
· Claimed Jim Crow laws were good for Black people
At one point, a filmmaker called Fuentes “the most canceled man in America.”
However, he’s now back on some platforms, including X, and recently sat down for an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
Pushback on Fuentes
During that interview with Carlson, which got five million views, Fuentes continued to spout his hate speech and Carlson rarely pushed back.
At one point, Fuentes told Carlson December 18th was an important date to Fuentes.
“It’s Joseph Stalin’s birthday,” Fuentes said. “I’m a fan.”
As the two laughed, Carlson responded.
“We’ll circle back to that,” Carlson said, although they never did.
Carlson giving Fuentes a large platform prompted immediate backlash from conservatives.
“That’s not a conservative ideology at all,” Sen. James Lankford, R-OK, said on “Meet the Press.” “That’s a hateful rhetoric that’s inconsistent with even the United States Constitution, not just inconsistent with the Republican Party.”
Other prominent conservative voices also called out Carlson and Fuentes including Fox News’ Mark Levin and Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro.
“The issue here isn’t that Tucker Carlson had Nick Fuentes on his show last night,” Shapiro said. “He has every right to do that, of course. The issue here is that Tucker Carlson decided to normalize and fluff Nick Fuentes, and that the Heritage Foundation then decided to robustly defend that performance.”
Levin, a Jewish conservative, made his feelings clear during a Republican Jewish Coalition speech, calling Fuentes “little Adolf.”
“My advice to little Adolf is just go full,” Levin said. “Put the brown shirt on. What are you, a coward? Put the brown shirt on. I know you can’t grow the Hitler mustache. You’re still stuck in your prepubescent stage.”
Other members of the GOP have also denounced Carlson platforming Fuentes including Sen. Ted Cruz, R-TX, and Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-TX.
Most of the Democratic pushback against Fuentes came following President Donald Trump hosting Fuentes and rapper Kanye West at Mar-A-Lago for dinner in 2022.
“If it was any other party, breaking bread with Nick Fuentes would be instantly disqualifying for Trump,” Ammar Mousa, a DNC spokesperson, said at the time. “The most extreme views have found a home in today’s MAGA Republican party.”
Trump posted on Truth Social, “I didn’t know Fuentes,” following the blowback from that dinner.
Trump administration officials have mostly stayed out of this conservative infighting on this topic.
“The infighting is stupid,” Vice President JD Vance said on X. “I care about my fellow citizens–particularly young Americans–being able to afford a decent life, I care about immigration and our sovereignty, and I care about establishing peace overseas so our resources can be focused at home.”
Fuentes supporters
Fuentes has more than one million followers on X and his show regularly exceeds 500,000 views on Rumble.
A report from Rolling Stone shows many of his supporters like that he speaks his mind.
His followers are known as Groypers. That term comes from a meme that shows a smug-looking green cartoon frog.
It’s derived from Pepe the Frog, which became a widely used symbol by the alt-right.
Groypers describe themselves as Christian nationalists who oppose feminism and gay rights.
The group made headlines following the murder of Charlie Kirk. Groypers have been at odds with Kirk’s Turning Point USA for years, even antagonizing TPUSA speakers at events.
Fuentes has even been barred from TPUSA events.
The post Republicans push back after Tucker Carlson’s interview with Nick Fuentes appeared first on Straight Arrow News.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
