The stage is set for a presidential 2020 showdown.
President Donald Trump versus Joe Biden.
But conservatives are already looking ahead to 2024, and the whispers about Fox News host Tucker Carlson as the nominee have been growing tremendously.
Not Don Trump Jr., not Vice President Mike Pence and not Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.
“I think Day One, Tucker probably starts ahead of those people if he does run,” an anonymous source told Politico.
It’s the enigmatic opinion host whose generating some noise as a contender.
He may be tabbed as an immediate frontrunner.
The article discusses the possibility of Carlson riding his wave of television popularity into the White House. Pundits have declared the network host a ratings king — particularly after “Tucker Carlson Tonight” became the highest watched cable program in history.
An unnamed GOP strategist in the article was quoted saying, “If you are a Republican politician and you want to know where Republican voters are, all you have to do is watch Tucker Carlson every night.”
So November 2020 could decide some things.
Sam Nunberg, a former Trump political aide who also knows Carlson, said, “Let me put it this way: If Biden wins and Tucker decided to run, he’d be the nominee.”
He’s caught the eye of onlookers, according to Politico.
Strategists of other potential candidates believe they hear clues to future Carlson campaign speeches in his recent Fox News monologues.
National Review Editor Rich Lowry claims Carlson’s popularity comes from the idea that he’ll say what other politicians won’t.
“What he’s been saying speaks for a lot of people, and it’s basically not expressed or serviced by most Republican politicians,” Lowry said. “There’s a lot to be said for being fearless, and he is, while Republican politicians, as a breed, are not.”
But Carlson isn’t a politician. After all, he’s been increasingly known to call out the GOP whenever he sees fit, including Trump.
And that’s why Nunberg has his doubts.
“He’s so disgusted with politicians,” he said of Carlson, who was allegedly once convinced to run on a Libertarian ticket by Trump associate Roger Stone.
All that said, this is politics, where things could change in a heartbeat.
Should Biden win in November, a number of anticipating eyes will be on Carlson.
The Horn editorial team