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The 2028 Election and the Tucker Carlson Problem

Brian Watt
@BrianWatt
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There has been a general assumption that the GOP ticket for the 2028 presidential election will be J.D Vance for president with Marco Rubio as vice president. However J.D. Vance's friendship and, to date, his silence on the outrageous claims and antisemitic rants of Tucker Carlson may cost Vance his position at the top of the ticket, and may even relegate J.D. to the political wasteland making him as irrelevant as Mike Pence.

When it comes to experience as a politician - as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, to the US Senate to the current and very adept Secretary of State (amongst his other roles - acting archivist of the United States, snow remover, president-in-waiting of Cuba, and on and on), one can make the stronger argument that Marco Rubio is better suited to be the front runner on the GOP ticket.

Americans generally support a candidate who is articulate and bold rather than timid or evasive. I like J.D. Vance. I believe he is presidential material. But I also feel that he needs to say something about Tucker Carlson in particular and the emergence of antisemitism from the likes of Carlson and Candace Owens who claim to speak for conservatives. Otherwise he should plan on retreating back into the private sector and maybe write another book.

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Discussion (147)

  • Hoyacon@Hoyacon

    Well, this could get pretty deep, but I have to question whether Carlson’s kookery rises to the level of antisemitism. Yes, the likes of Nick Fuentes are best shunned, and yes, he seems fixated on Israeli influence on the US. But I’m not aware of any blatantly anti-Semitic remarks he has made. Note, though, that I find myself listening to him less and less because of the above-referenced kookery so it’s entirely possible I’ve missed something.

  • Brian Watt@BrianWatt
    ReplyingtoHoyacon

    Hoyacon (View Comment):

    Well, this could get pretty deep, but I have to question whether Carlson’s kookery rises to the level of antisemitism. Yes, the likes of Nick Fuentes are best shunned, and yes, he seems fixated on Israeli influence on the US. But I’m not aware of any blatantly anti-Semitic remarks he has made. Note, though, that I find myself listening to him less and less because of the above-referenced kookery so it’s entirely possible I’ve missed something.

    From VIN News and other news outlets:

    NEW YORK (VINnews) — Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson ignited severe backlash during a February 20, 2026, interview with US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee by suggesting widespread DNA testing for residents of Israel to verify biblical ancestry claims tied to land rights.

  • Percival@Percival
    ReplyingtoHoyacon

    Hoyacon (View Comment):

    Well, this could get pretty deep, but I have to question whether Carlson’s kookery rises to the level of antisemitism. Yes, the likes of Nick Fuentes are best shunned, and yes, he seems fixated on Israeli influence on the US. But I’m not aware of any blatantly anti-Semitic remarks he has made. Note, though, that I find myself listening to him less and less because of the above-referenced kookery so it’s entirely possible I’ve missed something.

    If you skate close enough to the edge of that particular ice patch, then what is wrong with your judgement becomes more of an issue rather than whether or not you're an antisemite.

  • Chris O@ChrisO
    ReplyingtoHoyacon

    Hoyacon (View Comment):

    Well, this could get pretty deep, but I have to question whether Carlson’s kookery rises to the level of antisemitism. Yes, the likes of Nick Fuentes are best shunned, and yes, he seems fixated on Israeli influence on the US. But I’m not aware of any blatantly anti-Semitic remarks he has made. Note, though, that I find myself listening to him less and less because of the above-referenced kookery so it’s entirely possible I’ve missed something.

    This is the point of why Tucker does not need to be addressed. People are simply tuning him out. The 'addressing the situation' thing sounds to me like opening a can of worms, and it would play into the hands of Democrat media. Be ready to address it, yes, but putting energy toward it now calls attention to it, and at a time when the Left is taking a beating on anti-Semitism, not least from one of their own: Sen. John Fetterman. Don't steal their thunder.

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