What did Tucker Carlson say about Israel and when did he make the remarks?
Executive summary
Tucker Carlson has repeatedly argued in 2025 that the United States has little strategic interest in Israel, portraying Israel as a net burden compared with Gulf states and accusing pro-Israel forces of exerting undue influence on U.S. policy; those remarks surfaced across interviews and his show beginning in spring and intensifying through June 2025 [1] [2] [3]. The comments prompted sharp pushback from policy analysts, Jewish organizations and some conservatives who say his framing traffics in antisemitic tropes and misreads strategic realities [1] [4] [3].
1. What Carlson said: blunt assessments of Israel’s value to the U.S.
Carlson declared that the United States has “no overriding strategic interest” in Israel and asked rhetorically “What are we getting out of this? Nothing. It’s only cost,” arguing that relationships with the energy-rich Gulf Cooperation Council states are “infinitely more important” than ties to Israel and singling out Qatar as “so much more important” [1]. He has also alleged that Israel’s supporters exert “psychological influence” over American threat perceptions and described pro-Israel backers in language that critics say echoes old antisemitic stereotypes about exceptionalism and control, a claim the Combat Antisemitism Movement and other groups called conspiratorial and unproven [3]. Across multiple appearances he has compared Israel unfavorably to Gulf states, questioned the strategic payoff of U.S. backing, and repeatedly framed American entanglement with Israel as costly and imposed rather than mutually beneficial [1] [5].
2. When he said it: a cluster of remarks in 2025, especially spring–June
The critique emerged publicly in the spring of 2025 and became a recurring theme by April on Carlson’s platforms, according to analyses of his output that month and after [4]. Specific interviews where the themes appeared include a Doha Forum conversation reported as taking place “earlier this month” in the Hudson Institute write-up and a widely noted June 2025 interview with Senator Ted Cruz that surprised many observers by its forceful critique of the U.S.–Israeli alliance [1] [2]. Carlson also advanced similar claims in an interview with The American Conservative in 2025, where he argued Israeli influence shaped U.S. threat perceptions—remarks that drew public condemnation from anti‑hate groups [3].
3. How commentators and analysts responded
Policy experts accused Carlson of strategic ignorance for dismissing Israel’s economic and military contributions, noting Israel’s gas exports and defense cooperation as factual counterpoints to his “nothing…only cost” formulation [1] [5]. Jewish organizations and think tanks documented a marked increase in negative Israel-related content from Carlson in 2025 and warned that his rhetoric often crosses into or amplifies antisemitic tropes, even as some studies stopped short of labeling every statement explicitly antisemitic [4] [6]. Others on the right embraced his isolationist, “America First” framing, turning his critique into a broader debate inside the GOP over whether the party’s base remains solidly pro‑Israel [7] [8].
4. Political positioning, platforming and implied agendas
Observers note Carlson’s critiques sit alongside a broader right‑wing realignment on Israel: his messaging fuses populist anti‑interventionism with attacks on “globalist” elites and occasional platforming of fringe figures, moves critics say enable extremist views to enter mainstream conservative discourse [9] [4]. His guests and the tone of some interviews prompted accusations that his critiques are not neutral policy analysis but performative positioning that benefits audiences skeptical of traditional pro‑Israel conservatism, and that he strategically frames questions to provoke and normalize harsher rhetoric [9] [10].
5. Limits in the record and what remains unverified
The sources establish the core claims Carlson made and trace their appearance across his 2025 output, but the provided reporting does not always supply verbatim transcripts or precise dates for every cited remark (for example, the Hudson Institute piece refers to a Doha Forum exchange “earlier this month” without a specific calendar date in the excerpt) so readers who need exact wording and timestamps should consult primary recordings or full transcripts of Carlson’s shows and the named interviews [1] [2].