MAGA civil war over Israel erupts into the open at Turning Point USA conference |
The first major gathering of Turning Point USA since the murder of its influential founder Charlie Kirk laid bare divisions over Israel and the embrace of antisemitic figures.
Key figures in the Make America Great Again movement took to the stage in Phoenix on Thursday and Friday to tear into each other, blasting opponents for cozying up to fascists or accusing them of besmirching the memory of Kirk.
Influential podcaster Ben Shapiro came straight out of the gate, attacking former Fox News host Tucker Carlson for an uncritical interview with self-described white nationalist Nick Fuentes.
Shapiro sharply criticized Carlson for interviewing the outspoken antisemite on his podcast, calling it “an act of moral imbecility.”
The Jewish podcaster, attacking Carlson for a second time within days, said the former Fox News host should never have given publicity to Fuentes, whom he called “a Hitler apologist, Nazi-loving, anti-American piece of refuse.”
Kirk had “despised” Fuentes, Shapiro added. “He knew that Nick Fuentes is an evil troll and that building him up is an act of moral imbecility, and that is precisely what Tucker Carlson did.”
Shapiro also hit out at Carlson and other leaders within the conservative movement, including broadcaster Megyn Kelly, over what he said was their failure to call out figures such as Candace Owens, who often spreads conspiracy theories, many of them antisemitic.
Owens has alleged without evidence that Israeli spies were involved in Kirk’s death and that he was betrayed by people close to him. Authorities........