TJ Walker breaks down Tucker Carlson's recent turn against Trump, citing three main criticisms: Trump's war rhetoric on Iran, his lack of independence, and his evasion of Epstein questions. Carlson reaches 34 million monthly downloads and tens of millions on YouTube and X, making his condemnation significant within conservative media as Trump's approval sits at 36 percent.
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Ultimize. Okay, Tucker Carlson, never been a big fan, but wow, is he making news these days with his complete disavowal of Donald Trump. Now he's building a case on a number of different fronts. First, there's foreign policy in Iran. Tucker's been hammering Trump over the Iran war and over Trump's rhetoric around it. In one sharp rebuke, Tucker said 'Who do you think you are? You're tweeting out the F-word on Easter? No decent person mocks other people's religions. We are not a theocracy, and God willing, we never will be.' So again, a little background: Tucker Carlson admitted he's essentially ashamed for ever having endorsed Trump. He disavows him, thinks it's a blight on his record. So second, Trump's independence and judgment. Tucker said he still feels sorry for Trump, as I do for all slaves, then added, he's hemmed in by other forces. He can't make his own decisions. He's awful to watch. Now, this is not normal intra-MAGA criticism. This is Tucker Carlson basically saying the president is a hostage in his own White House. Third big reason: Epstein and what Tucker frames as betrayal and cover-up. Tucker Carlson previously blasted Trump's handling of the Epstein matter, saying, I voted against this kind of crap. You're not allowed to dismiss my questions as a United States citizen with a wave of a hand and an attack on my character. He also asked, who the hell was Jeffrey Epstein working for? Now, Tucker's own recent episode describes specific lines, things like Trump's shocking text to MTG and the Epstein cover-up. That's how he's describing his episodes. On his podcast. Things like Trump's failure to investigate Charlie Kirk's assassination, Tucker on Trump's desecration of Easter, Tucker on the new religion of Trump's America and his mockery of Jesus Christ. All of these are coming from Tucker Carlson, not some left-winger, not some Democrat. It's important to remember, on popularity, Tucker is still a giant. On Apple Podcasts, The Tucker Carlson Show was at number 6 in the news charts when I checked. Podcast March 2026 ratings put his show at number 7 and monthly downloads and views at 34 million for the month. His main YouTube presence also has, you know, substantial subscribers. A recent profile in The Spectator put him at 13.3 million followers on X. So this guy has a huge, huge, huge following, and it's just amazing, and I would say frankly enjoyable, watching him eviscerate Trump. I want to share with you a few more thoughts in just a moment. We're going to be back after this brief commercial break. Here's something I've learned after years of doing this: the people who actually improve don't necessarily hear better advice. They just stay around it longer. They keep exposing themselves to the same useful ideas until it finally clicks. Most people don't do that. So if you want to be in the small group that actually follows through, go to ultimize.com, that's ultimize.com, and get the free course. There's one on communication, one on building better habits, nothing fancy, just something you can keep coming back to If you're already there, you're doing the hard part. Just go to ultimize.com and build on it. Tucker Carlson has now crossed the line from critic to confessor. This is not Rachel Maddow saying Trump is reckless. This is not AOC saying Trump is dangerous. Oh, this is not some liberal columnist on her third oat milk latte and fourth use of the word fascism before breakfast. This is Tucker Carlson, the same Tucker Carlson who was the number one host on Fox News during Trump's first term, the same Tucker Carlson whose current show is still one of the biggest forces in conservative media, the same Tucker Carlson whose podcast is sitting near the top of the Apple and podcast charts, pulling tens of millions of monthly views and downloads. In other words, this is not a guy screaming into a ring light from the food court of a dying mall. This is a real power center on the right. And now he's saying in his own words, I'm sorry for misleading people. He says he campaigned for Trump. He says we're implicated in this. He says you and me and millions of people like us are the reason this is happening right now. And he says he will be tormented by it, tormented by his support of Trump. This is huge because Tucker is not making some shallow personal complaint like Trump unfollowed him. Didn't invite him to Mar-a-Lago and served him some store-brand frozen shrimp. He's making a serious substantive case. On Iran, Tucker is furious that Trump has lurched into war talk and religious mockery. Tucker said, who do you think you are? You're tweeting out the F-word on Easter. Then he added, no decent person mocks other people's religions. And then the kicker: we are not a theocracy, and God willing, we never be, and we never will be. This is not Tucker saying Trump has a messaging problem. This is Tucker Carlson saying Trump is morally off the rails. Then Tucker goes even further. He says he feels sorry for Trump, as I do for all slaves. Well, why? Because Tucker says he's hemmed in by other forces. He can't make his own decisions. He's awful to watch. Again, can't believe I'm agreeing with Tucker Carlson, but he's absolutely right on this. Now think about that. One of the, one, one of the most influential conservative commentators in the country starts describing the Republican president as a slave who can't make his own decisions. That's not a policy disagreement. That is a political exorcism. And then there's Epstein. Tucker has been hammering Trump and the administration for what he clearly sees as evasion and betrayal. He says, quote, I voted against this kind of crap. He said, you're not allowed to dismiss my questions as a United States citizen with a wave of the hand and then attack my character. And he asked, who the hell was Jeffrey Epstein working for? This matters because Tucker's criticism isn't random. It is thematic. He's saying Trump is not telling the truth, something I've been saying and every centrist commentator has been saying for a decade, but now it's coming from within MAGA. He's saying Trump is morally compromised, again, something obvious to most of us for more than a decade, but now it's coming from Trump's strongest supporters. He's saying Trump is weak. He's saying Trump is manipulated. He's saying Trump is betraying the voters who trusted him. This is not some petty media feud. This is an argument designed to move a base. And unlike most commentators, Tucker actually can move a base. Again, this is a guy whose current show is top 10 on major podcast charts, number 6 on Apple's news charts, and 34.1 million monthly downloads and views in March alone. His audience on YouTube is massive. And estimates put his ex-following in the low tens of millions. So yeah, this is seismic, and it comes at the worst possible time for Trump because his approval is already collapsing. Reuters/Ipsos now has him at 36% approval, down from 47% at the start of the term. Only 26% approve of his handling of the cost of living. That was supposed to be his signature issue. Gas is still over $4 a gallon nationally. No sign of that changing anytime soon. This is not a political rough patch. This is the check-in engine light, the oil light, and the pull-over immediately light all coming on at once. Now, am I predicting Republican senators suddenly turn into Profiles in Courage? No. These people have spent tens— spent 10 years treating spine like it's an optional software update. No smites, let's not kid ourselves. But if Trump drops further and if a figure like Tucker Carlson keeps pounding him from inside the right, then something changes. Fear changes. And once Republicans are no longer afraid of the base, they may remember they are elected officials and not backup dancers in the Trump musical. I'm not predicting impeachment, I'm not predicting removal. I'm not predicting Lindsey Graham walks into the Capitol tomorrow wearing a Che Guevara shirt and quoting the Federalist Papers. But I am saying this, this feels like the beginning of the end of Trump's ability to do whatever the heck he wants without consequences. Because when the criticism comes from the left, the base shrugs. When the criticism comes from Tucker Carlson, the base at least looks up from the grill and said, huh, wait, wait, what? And in politics, that moment matters. This moment is how the spell breaks. Ultimise.
