In a recent interview, conservative commentator Tucker Carlson challenged Senator Ted Cruz on U.S. involvement in the Middle East, which led to a heated exchange over foreign policy, military action, and Cruz’s knowledge of Iran. Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson confronted Republican Senator Ted Cruz over his public stance on U.S. foreign policy toward Iran, as tensions escalate between Israel and Iran. Cruz has been vocal in urging President Donald Trump to support Israel in what he describes as efforts to counter the Iranian regime, a position Carlson strongly criticised during the exchange.

The discussion took a confrontational turn when Carlson asked whether the U.S. was actively participating in military strikes against Iran. Cruz initially appeared to confirm U.S. involvement, saying, “Israel is leading them, but we’re supporting them.” Carlson immediately pressed him, noting that this would contradict public statements from the Trump administration, which has denied direct U.S. military engagement in offensive operations against Iran.

“You’re breaking news here,” Carlson remarked. Cruz later walked back the comment, clarifying, “No, we’re not bombing them. Israel is bombing them.”

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Tucker Carlson vs Ted Cruz

Carlson also questioned Cruz’s understanding of Iran, beginning with a simple query: “How many people live in Iran?” Cruz admitted he did not know the population figure. When Carlson responded with an estimated number, 92 million,he expressed disbelief that Cruz, a senior lawmaker advocating for regime change, was unfamiliar with such a basic detail.

“How could you not know that?” Carlson asked. “It’s kind of relevant because you’re calling for the overthrow of the government.”

The exchange grew increasingly tense as Carlson continued to probe Cruz’s familiarity with the region, asking about Iran’s ethnic composition and religious demographics. Cruz replied that the country is “predominantly Shia” and includes Persians, but was unable to provide precise percentages. “You don’t know anything on Iran,” Carlson said. Cruz pushed back, stating: “I didn’t say I don’t know anything about Iran,” before expressing frustration at the line of questioning. “Okay, I’m not the Tucker Carlson expert on Iran,” he said.

As the discussion continued, both men spoke over each other, with Cruz accusing Carlson of being uninformed on Iran’s threats toward the U.S. and President Trump. “You’re the one who claims they’re not trying to murder Donald Trump,” Cruz said, before referencing the 2020 U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani.

‘Ted Cruz got cooked’

The internet swiftly reacted to the video. A user commented, ” Ted Cruz got cooked.” Another added, “I have always been a Tucker supporter but everything is a gotcha moment. If Cruz had gotten the population correct, Tucker would have then asked the religious background. Then it would have been something else until Cruz was wrong.” ” He got schooled,” claimed a user. Another added, “To be fair, Tucker plays the whole “you didn’t know that?” game a lot more convincingly than that Douglas Murray character.” “Thank you for being the voice of reason, Tucker. MAGA was never supposed to be about serving our Israeli overlords,” claimed a user.