JD Vance lashed out at a journalist for targeting Tucker Carlson ’s son as the MAGA civil war over the three-week-old Nick Fuentes interview intensifies. The vice president sent out a firestorm of X posts on Sunday addressing right-wing journalist Sloan Rachmuth who went after Buckley Carlson for being related to Tucker and claiming anti-Semitism is ‘a Carlson family trait.’ Carlson has faced a wave of criticism from pro-Israel leaders in the Republican Party following his October interview with Fuentes, who is infamous for making anti-Semitic remarks.
The former Fox News anchor’s 28-year-old son, Buckley, serves in Vance’s office as the vice president’s deputy press secretary. Rachmuth questioned whether Buckley is also a ‘vile bigot’ before Vance stepped in to set the record straight. She attacked Tucker’s brother, who is also named Buckley, on Saturday for allegedly idealizing Fuentes and asked, ‘Is Tucker’s son Buckley, who serves as JD Vance’s top aide also a vile bigot?’
‘I have zero tolerance for scumbags attacking my staff,’ Vance wrote on X. ‘And yes, *everyone* who I’ve seen attack Buckley with lies is a scumbag.’ ‘Sloan describes herself as a defender of “Judeo-Christian Values.” Is it a “Judeo-Christian value” to lie about someone you don’t know? Not in any church I ever spent time in!’ Vance added, ‘Sloan Rachmuth is a “journalist” who has decided to obsessively attack a staffer in his 20s because she doesn’t like the views of his father.’ Buckley’s former employer, Indiana Republican Senator Jim Banks, also came to his former Deputy Chief of Staff defense.
‘Buckley worked for me for five years,’ Banks wrote in response to Rachmuth. ‘He’s one of the smartest, most trustworthy and loyal staffers I’ve ever had. These personal attacks are disgusting and don’t serve your cause well.’ Vance has not addressed the controversy surrounding Carlson’s interview with one of the far right’s most prominent voices. GOP figures such as Ben Shapiro and Mark Levin have denounced Carlson for ‘platforming’ Fuentes’ anti-Semitic views. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, did weigh into the debate by defending Carlson.
Trump on Sunday evening told reporters, ‘You can’t tell him who to interview. I mean, if he wants to interview Nick Fuentes, I don’t know much about him, but if he wants to do it, get the word out. People have to decide. Ultimately, people have to decide.’ In the past, Fuentes has been critical of Trump and encouraged his supporters, known as ‘Groypers’, not to support Trump in the 2024 election.
Trump, Fuentes, and Kanye West had an infamous Thanksgiving dinner together at Mar-a-Lago in November 2022. The president claimed he was not aware of Fuentes before meeting him at the dinner. Trump’s defense of Carlson comes after the former Fox News anchor has been a vocal critic of the Trump administration’s foreign policy, including over the president’s apparent desire for regime change in Venezuela.
