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Today, Explained

Tucker Carlson explains himself

02 Apr 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

0.689 - 1.773 Noel King

It's Today Explained.

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Chapter 2: What is Tucker Carlson's stance on the Iran war?

1.854 - 7.999 Noel King

President Trump has not made a coherent case for his war in Iran, and last night he said he's not ending it yet.

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8.063 - 17.075 Donald Trump

We're going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks. We're going to bring them back to the Stone Ages where they belong.

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17.336 - 21.662 Noel King

His ally, Tucker Carlson, has been making a very coherent case against the war.

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21.862 - 33.598 Tucker Carlson

Because it doesn't serve American interests in any conceivable way. And let me just say that if it does in some way serve the interests of the United States, I'd love to hear it. I haven't heard.

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33.578 - 43.796 Noel King

On Tuesday, we asked Carlson about his break with Trump and about how the Trump coalition is splintering as some young conservatives abandon the president and embrace something darker.

44.076 - 58.962 Tucker Carlson

It becomes like all of a sudden, like, hey, you kids, why are you listening to Elvis Presley? And that rock music is bad. Like all of a sudden, Fuentes controls the conversation and becomes the cool kid. And the net effect is to make the Holocaust a joke.

59.937 - 81.957 Unknown

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82.417 - 89.944 Unknown

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89.924 - 114.956 Adam Grant

Wharton professor Ethan Mollick says that with AI, his students are doing a semester's worth of work in just a couple of days. In Mollick's classroom, AI is required. I'm Henry Blodgett, and this week on Solutions, I talk to Professor Mollick about how he's radically transformed how he teaches and how he continues to test the boundaries of what AI can and cannot do.

Chapter 3: How does Tucker Carlson explain his break with Trump?

141.912 - 159.385 Noel King

All right. So we're here today. We're going to be talking about Iran, Israel and the future of the America First and MAGA movement. Let's start. Let's start here. I've been listening to a lot of your show, watching a lot of your show. You don't think that the U.S. should be at war with Iran. Why not?

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159.922 - 177.203 Tucker Carlson

Well, I haven't heard a consistent case from anyone. And I would say it's not just the Trump administration. In fact, I don't I mean, my strong sense, having watched it closely, is that there was not a groundswell of support from this war from within the Trump administration. The president made the decision to do it, but he wasn't surrounded by advisers who were urging him to do it.

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177.364 - 180.107 Tucker Carlson

Just the opposite. I don't think there was any enthusiasm for it.

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180.087 - 180.988 Noel King

So why are we in this war?

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181.008 - 199.585 Tucker Carlson

He did it as we're in it, as the Secretary of State explained, because we were pushed into it by the Netanyahu government, by Benjamin Netanyahu. Now, by the way, to be totally clear, that's not a way of exculpating the president. He's the commander in chief of the U.S. military. So he makes the decision. Trump made the decision. It was the wrong decision.

200.066 - 217.123 Tucker Carlson

But if you're asking why did he make that decision, it's because he was pushed into it by Benjamin Netanyahu, which raises the second obvious question, which is where did Netanyahu get the power? as the prime minister of a country of 9 million forced the president of a country of 350 million to do his bidding?

217.143 - 240.098 Tucker Carlson

And I can't answer that question, but I can just tell you what happened because the Secretary of State said it, and the Speaker of the House said it, and I watched it. And what happened was the Israelis went to the White House, Netanyahu went to Trump and said, we're going to do this. We're going to move against Iran. And at that point, the U.S. had really only two choices. One is to follow

240.078 - 269.028 Tucker Carlson

And the other is to tell Israel no and force them not to do it because, as Marco Rubio explained on camera, if you allowed Israel to go alone, you are certain that American forces and citizens and interests in the Gulf would be destroyed. But either way— Benjamin Netanyahu made the decision on the timing of this. I'm going now. And we followed. So that's another way of saying he was in charge.

269.65 - 273.763 Tucker Carlson

And I'm just here to say I think it's wrong. And I think the majority of Americans think it's wrong.

Chapter 4: What concerns does Tucker Carlson have about the young conservative movement?

534.089 - 553.112 Tucker Carlson

I mean, clearly it did because it sent the message that you can achieve regime change at almost no cost. And as we're learning five weeks in, that's not possible in Iran. And the consequences are potentially like catastrophic. I mean, I don't think anyone who's paying close attention has slept well for the last month.

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553.48 - 571.877 Tucker Carlson

I would love to be able to say, okay, we made our point and we killed their religious leader and somehow that's virtuous, I guess, and this is victory and we're leaving. I mean, as an American, I would like to see that because I want to get out of this with as little damage as possible. But I don't see how you can do that without –

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572.988 - 589.814 Tucker Carlson

leaving Iran stronger than it was, in real terms, stronger than it was. Oh, they have no Navy, they have no Air Force. Okay, but they control 20% of the world's energy? How does that not make them stronger than they were in February? Well, it does. So anyway, it's a mess.

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590.455 - 591.477 Noel King

Who are the serious men?

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594.742 - 608.101 Tucker Carlson

Well, you know, you find out in moments like this. I mean, who can think clearly? Who can accept... Unhappy truths digest them and, you know, make wise decisions on the basis of them or who retreats into fantasy.

608.903 - 614.998 Noel King

Who are you seeing do that? The former? In the White House? In the administration?

615.078 - 615.178

Yeah.

616.002 - 617.164 Tucker Carlson

Oh, you don't have internet access?

617.324 - 621.87 Noel King

Deal with reality. Oh, deal with reality? I'm curious for your thoughts.

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