Report: Tucker Carlson Privately Advising Trump Against War With Iran

In the upper echelons of the Trump administration, hawkish voices on Iran predominate -- most notably Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton. But as tensions between the U.S. and Iran have escalated over the last few weeks, there’s been another, far different voice in the president’s ear: that of Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

A source familiar with the conversations told The Daily Beast that, in recent weeks, the Fox News host has privately advised Trump against taking military action against Iran. And a senior administration official said that during the president’s recent conversations with the Fox primetime host, Carlson has bashed the more “hawkish members” of his administration.

A source reveals that, in recent weeks, Fox's Tucker Carlson has privately advised Trump against taking military action against Iran https://t.co/y9yzba5j89

— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) June 19, 2019

Late last week, two oil tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz -- one Norwegian and the other Japanese -- were attacked. There were no casualties, and no evidence of oil spills. But the images of smoke pouring out of the sides of the hulking ships shocked the world and sent oil prices soaring. The Trump administration and the British government quickly attributed the attacks to the Iranians. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas initially said that U.S. evidence was "not enough" to show Iran was responsible for the attack. But Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday that there was "strong evidence" pointing to Iran.

Some Trump allies responded to the tanker attacks with calls for military action. Sen. Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, told CBS' Margaret Brennan that the moves justify military retaliation.

The president, meanwhile, took a vastly different tone -- less Cotton, more Carlson. In a Time interview published Monday evening, he dismissed the oil tanker attacks, saying, "So far, it's been very minor."