Tucker Carlson Highlights 'Ominous' Sign About Potential Iran War

Former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson has criticized Republican figures who are calling for the U.S. to go to war with Iran amid conflicts involving Israel.

Speaking on his new show which is hosted on X, formerly Twitter, Carlson said there are "ominous" signs that Republicans are not fighting against the Biden administration who he said was "pushing" for the country to head into a war with Iran as a retaliatory measure.

He made the comments as fears grow that the violence between the Iran-backed Islamist militant group Hamas and Israel could escalate into a wider conflict. On October 7, Hamas launched a large-scale incursion into Israel, the deadliest Palestinian militant attack on the country in history. Israel subsequently carried out its heaviest-ever air strikes on Gaza. As of October 24 over 1,400 people in Israel have died, the Associated Press reported, as well as more than 5,000 Palestinians in Gaza.

On Monday, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian blamed the U.S. providing military support to Israel for the attacks on Gaza. Amir-Abdollahian also warned the U.S. and its "proxy Israel" that if they do not "immediately stop the crime against humanity and genocide" in Gaza, then the Middle East area may soon spiral "out of control."

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there is a "likelihood of escalation" from Iranian-backed groups such as Hamas or Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group that has also recently been engaging in cross-border attacks on Israel's northern side, and said the U.S. was "taking every measure to make sure we can defend" Israelis and American citizens.

"We seem to be heading to war with Iran, certainly the Biden administration is pushing us in that direction," Carlson said.

"What's new and interesting and ominous is that very few Republicans, the opposition party, are pushing back. Instead, those party leaders are encouraging it."

Carlson then played a clip of South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham's October 15 interview with NBC's Meet the Press in which he said that if Hezbollah launches a major attack on Israel in an attempt to escalate the war with Hamas, then he would introduce a resolution in the Senate to allow the U.S. and Israel to "knock Iran out of the oil business."

When asked if this means he is poised for the U.S. to declare war on Iran, Graham added: "I am poised to use military force to destroy the source of funding for Hamas and Hezbollah."

Graham has also previously called for the U.S. to attack Iranian oil refineries if Hamas kills any Israeli or American hostages who were captured during their attacks on Israel.

"Now, that's Lindsey Graham. Few others in the Republican Party will be that open about their intentions, but very few disagree with him. Certainly not in private," Carlson adds.

"So what would war with Iran mean? Well, it's hard to know because virtually no one who was talking about it in public is operating from a deep interest in America's interest."

Graham's office has been contacted for comment via email.

This is not the first time that Carlson has spoken out against the U.S. potentially heading into war with Iran.

In January 2020, soon after Iranian general Qassem Soleimani was killed in air strikes approved by then President Donald Trump, Carlson urged the U.S. to avoid going to war if Iran retaliated. Trump had said the air strikes targeting Soleimani were carried out as the general was planning an imminent attack against the U.S.

"Is Iran really the greatest threat we face? And who's actually benefiting from this? And why are we continuing to ignore the decline of our own country in favor of jumping into another quagmire from which there is no obvious exit? If we're still in Afghanistan 19 years later, what makes us think there's a quick way out of Iran?" Carlson asked.

Trump is reported to have listened to the advice of the influential Fox News host. Days after the broadcast, Trump said that the U.S. would not retaliate against Iran after they fired missiles at U.S. bases in Iraq in response to the death of Soleimani.