Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and conservative commentator Tucker Carlson got into a shouting match over the ongoing Israel-Iran war.
The war of words erupted in an interview that Carlson previewed on Tuesday in anticipation of its full release on Wednesday.
As seen below, the interview began with fireworks:
Ted Cruz on Iran. Full interview tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/hJNwAHAnxZ
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) June 18, 2025
“How many people are living in Iran, by the way?” Carlson asked.
“I don’t know the population,” Cruz admitted.
“At all?” Carlson pressed.
“No, I don’t know the population,” Cruz replied.
“You don’t know the population of the country you seek to topple?” a stunned Carlson pushed back.
This prompted Cruz to ask him, “How many people live in Iran?”
“Ninety-two million,” Carlson promptly replied, shocking Cruz. “How could you not know that?”
“I don’t sit around memorizing population tables,” Cruz insisted.
“Well, it’s kind of relevant because you’re calling for the overthrow of the government,” Carlson noted.
“Why is it relevant, whether it’s 90 million or 80 million or 100 million? Why is that relevant?” Cruz asked.
“Well, because if you don’t know anything about the country …,” Carlson began replying before Cruz cut him off.
“I didn’t say I don’t know anything about the country,” Cruz said.
“Ok, what’s the ethnic mix of Iran?” Carlson asked, trying to catch Cruz slipping again.
“They are Persians and predominantly Shia,” the senator replied.
“What percent?” Carlson fired back.
Cruz wasn’t happy about this.
“Ok, this is cute,” he dismissively said.
“You don’t know anything about Iran,” Carlson said, doubling down. “You’re a senator who’s calling for the overthrow of the government, and you don’t know anything about the country!”
“No, you don’t know anything about the country,” Cruz claimed. “You’re the one who claims they’re not trying to murder Donald Trump.”
“No, I’m not saying that,” Carlson said, denying Cruz’s allegation.
“You’re one who can’t figure out if it was a good idea to kill General Soleimani, and you said it was bad,” Cruz continued.
“You don’t believe they’re trying to murder Trump because you’re not calling for military strikes against them in retaliation,” Carlson pushed back.
“Yes, I do!” Cruz exclaimed. “We’re carrying out military strikes today.”
“You said Israel was,” Carlson said, casting doubt on Cruz’s statement.
“Right, with our help,” Cruz responded. “I said ‘we.’ Israel is leading them, but we’re supporting them.”
This shocked Carlson.
“Well, this, you’re breaking news here, because the U.S. government last night denied – the National Security Council – spokesman Alex Pfeiffer denied on behalf of Trump that we were acting on Israel’s behalf in any offensive capacity at all,” he said.
“No, we’re not bombing them,” Cruz replied. “Israel’s bombing them.”
“You just said ‘we’ were,” Carlson noted.
“We are supporting Israel,” Cruz replied.
“This is high stakes. You’re a senator. If you’re saying the United States government is at war with Iran right now, people are listening,” Carlson responded.
The last time the two feuded like this was when Carlson spoke with Cruz on Fox News back in January of 2022. During that interview, Carlson excoriated the senator for referring to the Jan. 6 riot as “a terrorist attack.”
Ted Cruz explains his “terrorist attack” comment. pic.twitter.com/0xRbmOc5Si
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) January 7, 2022
Cruz pushed back at the time by attributing his Jan. 6 remarks to “sloppy” phrasing, but Carlson didn’t buy it.
“I just don’t believe you, and I mean that with respect,” the then-Fox News host said.
After Cruz’s most recent interview with Carlson, he posted a tweet blasting the former Fox News host for his “gotcha” questions and for attacking President Donald Trump.
Look:
Did a long interview w/ Tucker. He released a snippet playing a “gotcha” on the population of Iran. I declined to play that silly game.
WATCH the full 2-hr interview, where Tucker ATTACKS Trump, attacks the “AIPAC lobby,” & falsely claims Iran is NOT trying to assassinate Trump. pic.twitter.com/ELRVMKR75Q
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) June 18, 2025
The latest interview comes amid escalating tension between Israel and Iran after Israel struck several targets in the Islamic nation last Friday.
Iran eventually started firing back, triggering an ongoing feud that President Trump is now reportedly considering entering.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
- Veterans slam Democrat candidate for misrepresenting Naval rank and aren’t buying his excuses - March 27, 2026
- ‘I can’t breathe!’ Transgender atty tackled and arrested for disobeying judge shuts down law firm - March 27, 2026
- Former CIA officer recommends anti-Trump protesters use Serbian tactics - March 27, 2026
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.