Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist, attacked Tucker Carlson at a Turning Point USA event, accusing him of urging complacency instead of defending white identity. Fuentes advocated a more explicit identity‑based approach and claimed Carlson was "more pernicious" than Ben Shapiro because he appears mainstream while discouraging action. The exchange highlights how fringe white‑nationalist figures are gaining broader visibility and the resulting strains within conservative circles.
Nick Fuentes Scorns Tucker Carlson at TPUSA, Calls Him “More Pernicious” Than Ben Shapiro
Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist and long‑time anti‑Semite, publicly attacked former Fox host Tucker Carlson during a Turning Point USA event, accusing Carlson of failing to defend white Americans and promoting what Fuentes called "ideological liberalism." The confrontation highlights growing friction between openly extremist figures and more mainstream conservative personalities who have been accused of normalizing or platforming them.
What Happened
At the TPUSA appearance, Fuentes criticized Carlson for urging restraint and individualism rather than overtly advocating white identity politics. Fuentes went further, comparing Carlson unfavorably to Ben Shapiro and arguing Carlson is "more pernicious" because he appears familiar to audiences while urging complacency. Fuentes also suggested Shapiro should be "removed from America," a comment widely interpreted as targeting Jewish Americans.
Context And Amplification
Fuentes, 27, has a documented history of Holocaust denial, praise for Adolf Hitler, and explicit calls to curtail the rights of women, racial minorities, and LGBTQ people. His followers — often called the "Groyper Army" — have targeted conservative events and speakers, including Turning Point USA gatherings, to push a white‑nationalist agenda. In recent months his reach has expanded after appearances on podcasts hosted by figures such as Dave Smith and Glenn Greenwald, drawing renewed attention and controversy about mainstream platforms amplifying extremist voices.
Full Remarks (Transcript)
“Now that white people are starting to take our own side, now that white people are getting up and saying, ‘You know what, we don’t want any more immigration. We don’t want any more Indians. We don’t want any more Haitians or Somalians. We don’t want these people here. We don’t need them. They’re not making our country better. They are not like us at all. And we don’t want to be outnumbered by them, and we certainly don’t want to be ruled by them. We don’t want our children to be ruled by them.’”
“Now, people like Tucker get on stage and tell us to pump the brakes. ‘Well, the worst thing that could happen is if white people played identity politics.’ I could think of a million things worse for this country than white people playing identity politics—starting with and including mass migration and another war for Israel. How about that? Identity politics is the one thing that’ll destroy the country? I could think of a billion things. Before white identity politics is a problem and not the solution to what is happening.”
“But this is the picture, which is that one group is willing to get on the stage and defend their own people. One group is willing to get onto the stage and do what is best for themselves. For Shapiro to call everybody out, is that good for the Republican party? No. Is that good for Turning Point? No. Who is that good for? That is good for people that care about Israel—to reassert the chilling effect, cancel culture, censorship. That is good for people who care about Israel. It is bold. It is audacious. It is polarizing. But he’ll do it because that is who he defends.”
“The white man gets up and makes these apologies, talks about double standards. ‘I don’t hate anyone. I’m not a Jew hater. I’m really a good guy.’ And the one thing that could ruin America is if I took my own side. So who’s really more disappointing there? Who’s the real enemy actually? Is the real enemy Ben Shapiro?”
“Now, strictly speaking, he is the alien. He is the outsider. Strictly speaking, he is the foreign presence in the bloodstream. And so by definition, yes, Ben Shapiro needs to be removed from Turning Point USA—honestly, should be removed from America, in my opinion. But who is actually more pernicious? I think it’s somebody like Tucker Carlson. Because someone like Ben Shapiro takes the stage and we can point out, ‘You are not like us. You don’t look like us. You don’t talk like us. You have a Brooklyn accent, but you’re from LA. You’re weird. Something isn’t right here.’ It’s visible, it’s obvious, it is apparent.”
“But someone like Tucker gets up, looks like us, talks like us—blue‑eyed, little striking, doesn’t really have much of a chin, kind of looks like a thumb, but that’s okay. Hair is swept back, Tucker’s in, okay. But he tells us, ‘Calm down, be complacent.’ He tells us, ‘Relax. It’s not a big deal. Everybody just accept what is happening to the country. The only thing that will bring down the country is if we react too angrily, if we act too forcefully.’”
“It’s a tale of two speeches there. So Tucker gives this speech about ideological liberalism. ‘Well, we’re all just individuals. There are no groups, there are no peoples. There’s no blood guilt. We don’t hate anyone. And I invite the ADL to come to our side. You’re a hypocrite if you don’t, and identity politics is always evil.’”
“Oh, that’s great. I wish we had a white man that would stand up for our people. I wish we had a white man who would stand for our country, who would stand up for the American people that are being replaced—because they are.”
Why This Matters
Fuentes’s remarks underscore ongoing tensions in U.S. conservative politics about whether and how mainstream platforms should confront or distance themselves from extremist voices. The incident illustrates how individuals historically confined to the far right can gain wider attention — and how that amplification complicates debates over free speech, platforming, and the boundaries of acceptable political discourse.
