Mattathias Schwartz of Business Insider reported that he asked Tucker Carlson in a text on Tuesday evening if he was planning a run for president. It was noted that the newly self-employed far-right firebrand had a shocking answer: “Yes. Announcing Friday in New Hampshire.”
Tucker Carlson joked
It was further noted that he joked about it: “Totally kidding,” Carlson wrote. “Sorry. I can never control myself. I’m fundamentally a dick. My apologies.”
Carlson’s rash messages come as the explosive monologist attempts to rebrand himself as a full-time Twitter personality after 14 years on Fox News, which fired him earlier this month.
Carlson’s show became a kind of ideological North Star for the embittered and racialized nationalism that propelled Donald Trump into the White House and then incubated the Trump movement’s conspiracy theories and insatiable sense of outrage in the wake of his 2020 election loss.
On Fox, Carlson stoked hatred of undocumented immigrants, glossed over the violence of the January 6 insurrection, and criticized US support for Ukraine. It is noted that his fans are 63% male and 66% white, according to a survey by Morning Consult.
Prior to getting fired — for reasons that range from sending a racist text message to allegations of misogyny and bullying — he was earning roughly $25 million a year. By moving his show to Twitter, Carlson reportedly stands to lose millions in severance for breaking a noncompete clause in his contract.
Speculation about a possible GOP primary run has followed Carlson for years. An April poll conducted after his ouster found that 59% of likely US voters had a favorable view of Carlson, higher than Fox News’ favorability rating.
And despite airing private misgivings about Trump, Carlson has been wielding power from behind the scenes in ways that further blur the line between his roles as commentator and political heavyweight. Text messages show that he helped negotiate the standoff between Republican moderates and the far-right holdouts that eventually elevated Rep. Kevin McCarthy to House speaker on the 15th vote.
