Tucker Carlson is heading to Iowa this summer. The Family Leadership Summit announced the top-rated Fox News host would be the keynote speaker at their annual meeting in Des Moines.
Presidential candidates frequently appear at the Christian forum to raise their profile with socially conservative voters ahead of the Iowa caucuses. The event has had a significant impact on the low-turnout Republican caucuses.
In recent interviews, Carlson dismissed rumors that he considered the idea of running for president. Still, many in the Republican Party's base would welcome a Carlson White House run. His populist credentials are impeccable, and his ability to articulate them is arguably second to none.
Naturally, the announcement that he would address the summit has again fueled speculation on Carlson's political ambitions.
Mediaite has more on Carlson's upcoming appearance at the 2022 FAMiLY Leadership Summit:
The FAMiLY Leader is a socially conservative Chrisitan political organization, whose annual gathering has become a regular stomping ground for potential GOP presidential candidates. In 2021, the FAMiLY Leadership Summit was addressed by potential 2024 presidential candidates like former VP Mike Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD).
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“Tucker Carlson heading to Iowa, home of the presidential caucuses, this summer. This particular group's gathering has long been an event attended by Republicans with presidential ambitions,” wrote CBS News' Robert Costa.
Shane Goldmacher, a national politics reporter at the Times, jested, “The old saying that no one winds up in Iowa by accident…”
Former President Donald Trump's campaign survived a serious stumble at the 2016 FAMiLY Leadership Summit when he stunned the crowd by saying John McCain wasn't a war hero.
Hot Air blogger Allahpundit gave his two cents on Tucker's chances should he shock the political world and run for the White House:
Food for thought: Where would Tucker rank on a depth chart of potential 2024 hopefuls? That is, who would have to drop out to give him a semi-realistic chance of catching fire and surfing to the nomination? He's an expert communicator and has charisma to spare, which is probably enough to win a presidential nomination in our benighted era. I can't see him beating Trump, though, as the sheer size of Trump's stature within the party would probably end up suffocating a Carlson campaign. How do you catch fire when all of the media and grassroots oxygen is being consumed by you-know-who?
So, what do you think? Is there any chance Carlson will give up a lucrative career on television for politics? And where would he rank among Trump, DeSantis and other likely GOP presidential candidates?
