Far-right commentator Nick Fuentes has thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for defending Tucker Carlson’s right to interview him.
The interview between Fuentes and Carlson drew widespread backlash, including from MAGA figures such as Texas Senator Ted Cruz, for giving a platform to extremist views—Fuentes has espoused Holocaust denial and white nationalist ideology.
But Trump told reporters: “You can’t tell (Carlson) who to interview—if he wants to interview Nick Fuentes, I don’t know much about him, but if he wants to do it…you know people have to decide, ultimately the people have to decide.”
Fuentes shared a video clip of this quote with the caption: “Thank you Mr. President!”
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Why It Matters
The aftermath of Carlson’s interview with Fuentes has intensified ideological divides within the Republican Party, raising pressing questions about the bounds of acceptable discourse, the persistence of antisemitism in public debate and how leading conservative voices choose to engage.
Carlson’s decision to host Fuentes, a figure widely condemned for antisemitic rhetoric and Holocaust denial, has elicited intense response, including both public rebukes and defenses.
Trump has now weighed in, arguing that Carlson should be able to interview whoever he wants to.
What To Know
Trump said Carlson has said “good things about (him) over the years” adding that he has “had some great interviews with Tucker Carlson.” Then he went on to say that “you can’t tell (Carlson) who to interview.”
The controversy started when Carlson hosted Fuentes on his show two weeks ago. Carlson did challenge Fuentes on his views about race, arguing that it was against their shared Christian faith to see the world that way.
“It’s a true spiritual reality that we have to defend, which is that God created every person as an individual, not as a group—no woman gave birth to a community,” he said.
“We hate that kind of thinking right? That’s collectivist thinking, that’s identity politics.”
Fuentes said that, “as a Catholic he could not agree more” with Tucker but he has previously made other arguments about race, telling conservative podcaster Candace Owens: “We live in a heavily racial world and look sometimes we have racist feelings, racist feelings like ‘I want to live in a white neighborhood.'”
He went on to say he has “always been on the latter side” of the question “is it cultural or is it intrinsic?”
“Conservatives like to say it’s all culture,” he said. “Black America is the way it is because of hip-hop music and…all that kind of stuff and I think the uncomfortable reality is a big part of it is intrinsic.”
Fuentes has also repeatedly praised Adolf Hitler, saying last May that the “United States defeated the wrong enemy in World War II,” because “Nazism was in part a RESPONSE to the global communist revolution being fomented by Stalin.”
“And Hitler prevented the Soviet Union from invading all of Europe and inflicting rape, famine, and genocide,” he added.
He has previously spoken about the “heroic last stand of Adolf Hitler” and last June posted: “In conclusion, Donald Trump had sex with a porn-star, sieged the capitol, molested a woman, brought back H2O, called veterans losers, loves Hitler, and won two club championships, and that’s why he has my vote.”
Carlson was asked why he did not challenge Fuentes on some of these views when he joined conservative Megyn Kelly at her live show earlier this month.
Kelly said: “I personally have watched videos of (Fuentes) questioning the Holocaust, likening to it baking cookies in the oven and ‘there’s no way you could have gotten to 6 million’ seems to be his theory.”
“He’s ripped on poor Usha Vance in the most offensive terms,” she added, “so what do you say to those people who say: ‘Why didn’t you raise any of that?’”
Carlson responded: “You know do your own interview the way that you want to do it, you’re not my editor. Buzz off. You wanna go yell at Nick Fuentes, I’ll give you his cell—call him and yell at him and feel virtuous or whatever, that’s up to you.”
Newsweek has contacted Fuentes, via direct message on X, and Carlson, via email, for comment.
What People Are Saying
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro referenced the term “groypers,” used to describe Fuentes’ supporters when he said in a post on X: “No to the groypers. No to cowards like Tucker Carlson, who normalize their trash. No to those who champion them. No to demoralization. No to bigotry and anti-meritocratic horseshit. No to anti-Americanism. No.”
Republican Texas Senator Ted Cruz told Axios: “We have a responsibility to speak out even when it’s uncomfortable. When voices in our own movement push dangerous and misguided ideas, we can’t look the other way. I won’t hesitate to call out those who peddle destructive, vile rhetoric and threaten our principles and our future. Silence in the face of recklessness is not an option.”
What Happens Next
The controversy surrounding the Carlson-Fuentes interview has deepened schisms within the conservative movement, intensifying debates over the boundaries of free speech and the mainstreaming of extremist rhetoric.
