Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 3, 2025 / 17:52 pm
The Heritage Foundation is receiving backlash after Kevin Roberts, its president, defended Tucker Carlson’s recent controversial interview with Nick Fuentes.
Roberts said in a video message on social media Oct. 30 that “the venomous coalition attacking [Carlson] are sowing division” and that “their attempt to cancel him will fail.” While the Heritage Foundation president said he disagreed with and abhorred Fuentes’ views, he said “canceling him is not the answer.”
“When we disagree with a person’s thoughts and opinions, we challenge those ideas and debate,” Roberts said. “And we have seen success in this approach as we continue to dismantle the vile ideas of the left.”
During the interview, Fuentes, who said he is Catholic, at one point said he admired Joseph Stalin and lamented against “organized Jewry in America.” For his part, Carlson at another point said he disliked Christian Zionists “more than anybody” and referred to Christian Zionism as a “brain virus” and a “Christian heresy.”
Reports also surfaced that the Heritage Foundation had spent roughly $1.2 million sponsoring Carlson’s show, for about $75,000 per episode for a 12-month period beginning in June 2024.
Fallout ensued after Roberts’ video, with Heritage Foundation staffers posting a meme with the caption “Nazis are bad” in reference to Fuentes’ antisemetic views and self-professed admiration of Hitler.
The Hill initially reported further dissatisfaction among staffers and that Ryan Neuhaus, Roberts’ chief of staff, had been relocated Friday to another position within the organization. This came after Neuhaus reposted multiple statements in defense of Roberts’ video. Neuhaus has since resigned.
Legal scholar and moral philosopher Robert P. George weighed in on the debate surrounding Carlson’s interview Nov. 1, writing: “Engaging and forcefully arguing against people who deny the inherent and equal dignity of all is one thing, welcoming them into the movement or treating their ideas and ideologies as representing legitimate forms of conservatism is something entirely different.”
He said American conservatism faces a challenge from those like Fuentes “seeking acceptance in the conservative movement and its institutions” with the ultimate goal of subverting “our commitment to inherent and equal human dignity.”
“It is incumbent upon those of us who maintain the ‘ancient faith’ (to borrow a phrase from Lincoln) to make clear to friend and foe alike that we will not permit the integrity of our movement and its institutions to be compromised,” George concluded.
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So, Professor George seems to imply that what we need is a cancel culture of the right.
The problem then becomes: is it Nick Fuentes who gets cancelled, or is it Tucker Carlson who gets cancelled for giving air time to Nick Fuentes, or is it Kevin Roberts who gets cancelled for defending Tucker Carlson? Where does it stop, who gets to say?
As to Carlson’s general criticism of Christian Zionism, some Catholic thinkers have recently made similar points, arguing that the view of the present nation of Israel as somehow justified in its existence and actions by promises made to the ancient people of Israel in scripture is deeply flawed and not supported by Catholic theology. American Catholics need to be aware that some of our national discourse about the modern Israel is deeply influenced by evangelical protestant ideas, particularly about the end times. Ted Cruz seems to be particularly influenced by such thought. American Catholics need to pay more attention to how Rome and Catholic leaders in the mideast speak about that modern nation and find a more nuanced position than has prevailed in our political discourse and actions.
Thank God people like Ted Cruz are actually influenced by a biblical world view. It’s a terrible shame there seem to be fewer Catholics influenced that way today.
If one more Catholic acquaintance recommends me to listen to a Holocaust-denier podcaster…
🙁
I’ll go with Robert George (as usual).
I don’t always agree with Dr. George on everything but good for him here.
Although in principle I would agree with Robert George the offset is the disparate times we’re living in when there’s no limits to unreasonableness and little space for counterpoint.
Tucker’s view of Christian Zionism as a brain virus may have some value insofar as some of its features, such as a biblical right to Mideast territories, and the suggestion that the return of the Messiah King will occur in the Jerusalem Temple.
From this writer’s perspective, thrashing out opposing ideas is more of a value than an imposed censorship and silence.
Kudos to Roberts for defending the interview. If even Heritage, historically an establishment neocon project, is arguing for hearing out Fuentes and Carlson, then we are indeed at a turning point.
Certain issues will simply not go away and need to be discussed and debated: e.g., Hitler/Mussolini/Stalin/FDR, the run-up to WW2, WW2 itself, the founding of Israel, and today esp., the excessive Israeli/Zionist influence on American policy.
Super disappointing. I’m really saddened to read about this. We had a friend who worked for the Heritage Foundation & I’ve met Mr. Roberts in the past.
It’s one thing to uphold our right of free speech, even very toxic free speech. It’s another thing to give that a platform.