by Frank Holmes, reporter
Now that Fox News has “parted ways” with Tucker Carlson, many Americans want him to seek a different office: president of the United States.
“Republicans need a new leader, and Tucker Carlson is ready to lead,” says an ad the Draft Tucker PAC is airing on Newsmax TV all week.
“Tucker Carlson is witty, sharp, and mocks Woke nonsense,” says the ad, which compares Carlson to the late Rush Limbaugh. “Tucker will whip Biden in a debate.”
Sponsored: Disturbing Plan to “TURN OFF” Your Money…
The ad asks viewers to sign the petition to draft Carlson into the upcoming GOP primaries at TuckerPac.com, which also collected political contributions toward his end.
That 30-second spot grabbed Tucker Carlson’s attention — and the 54-year-old host just gave the fans who want him to throw his broadcaster’s hat in the ring his answer about 2024.
There is now a ‘Draft Tucker Carlson for President’ PAC. pic.twitter.com/056lbpbqFv
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) May 21, 2023
To paraphrase Congressman Mo Brooks, he said not just no, but Hell no.
“Mr. Carlson will not run for President in 2024 under any circumstances,” said a letter from Carlson’s lawyer and frequent guest, Harmeet Dhillon, to the political action committee. “Therefore your misrepresentations are damaging to Mr. Carlson and defrauding his supporters.”
Urgent: Common prescription drug now linked to Alzheimer’s? [sponsored]
The PAC does “not have Mr. Carlson’s permission or support to use his name, image, or likeness in your efforts.”
“If you do not immediately cease and desist your efforts to solicit money to ‘draft’ Mr. Carlson, we will use every legal means at our disposal to vindicate his rights and protect his supporters from these misrepresentations,” said her legal demand letter.
Carlson also asked Newsmax to quit running the ad, according to The Washington Times.
Dhillon believed the entire reason for the ad was to collect the names and contact information of conservative voters, which could then be sold to other campaigns looking for potential donors lists—but the group’s founder said he sincerely wanted to see Carlson give his next televised address from the Oval Office.
The Draft Tucker PAC founder, Chris Ekstrom, said he sank $35,000 of his own money into trying to coax the top-rated TV host into the presidential hustings and only collected $212 in donations.
Seniors: Don’t Drink Another Cup Of Coffee Until You Read This [Sponsored]
“Tucker’s attorney has contacted us to let us know that Tucker is not a candidate for president nor has any intentions of running and asked us to cease all activities on his behalf. We are going to honor that request,” said Charlie Kolean, a TuckerPAC spokesman.
As of this writing, that website has disappeared from the internet—although you can see an archived version of it here.
Ekstrom, who ran for Congress from Texas in 2020, said he’ll give that money to a charity of Tucker’s choice, or just give it back to the donors.
Dhillon said the main reason Carlson put a stop to the unauthorized campaign ads is that leading people to believe Tucker might run for office would cause his loyal fans to feel “disappointment and frustration.”
It was about them, not himself.
His fans have stuck with him, a new poll shows: A Gallup/Knight Foundation survey found Tucker Carlson is the most trusted news figure in America.
Sponsored: Bear market expert makes new prediction. Find out the details here.
Carlson ranked number one among all sources Americans rely on “to get information,” beating out all three networks “news” anchors.
GALLUP POLL: Tucker Carlson is the most followed or watched public figure in the United States for information. https://t.co/uqVD9MgEPa pic.twitter.com/sHOjZePVAJ
— InteractivePolls (@IAPolls2022) May 23, 2023
Also making the top five were MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, Sean Hannity, Trevor Noah, and Ben Shapiro.
Instead of the White House, Carlson appears headed to host a monetized talk show on Twitter.
ATTN SENIORS: Improved breathing by 57% [STUDY] [Sponsored]
Carlson remains under contract to Fox News for several years, but sources say his contract allows him to maintain and control his own social media accounts—and he plans to move his talk show to Elon Musk’s new medium.
Carlson may not have moved into politics, but Elon Musk did on Wednesday night when he hosted Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ official presidential announcement—a first in U.S. political history.
DeSantis joins Senator Tim Scott, R-S.C., who announced his historic bid to become America’s first black Republican president on Monday. Former Vice President Mike Pence is a shoo-in to take a shot at his former boss, 2024 front-runner President Donald Trump, but has not yet declared.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has sent signals he’s reconsidering his decision not to enter the GOP primaries.
Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, talk show host Larry Elder, and businessmen Perry Johnson and Ryan Binkley have all filed paperwork to run for president.
But Tucker Carlson will not be joining their ranks.
Biden’s Plan to Confiscate Your Cash [sponsored]
To stay on top of the latest developments in the presidential race, read The Horn.
Like Tucker Carlson and Elon Musk, we’ll be creating the new frontier of political broadcasting—and holding the powers that be accountable.
Frank Holmes is a veteran journalist and an outspoken conservative that talks about the news that was in his weekly article, “On The Holmes Front.”