Tucker Carlson convinced President-elect Donald Trump not to nominate former Secretary of State and CIA Director Mike Pompeo to be the next secretary of defense, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
Several people close to Trump believed that Pompeo was set to take over at the Pentagon. But Carlson reportedly argued that he was a choice filled with risk, saying that he was a warmonger.
Carlson pointed to a list of grievances, such as Pompeo’s alleged plans to kill Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, several people familiar with the former Fox News host’s thinking told The Journal. Carlson pushed the allegations about Pompeo and Assange during an April appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience, but didn’t share any evidence for his claims.
During an appearance on Australia’s The Nightly in October, Pompeo said the U.S. had legislation in place making it illegal for the government to conduct assassinations and that he followed the law “every moment” during his time as director of the CIA.
Carlson and Donald Trump Jr. shared their view that neoconservatives would seek to control Trump, and they pointed to Pompeo distancing himself from the baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen and his comments that the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot was “unacceptable.”
Just days after the election, Trump posted on Truth Social that Pompeo and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley would not be joining his next administration.
A number of officials who served during Trump’s first term and were hoping to return were reportedly blocked by Carlson and Trump Jr., who argued they were insufficiently loyal.
Some close to Trump believe that Pompeo would push for a more traditional Republican view of American foreign policy, and would likely support a continuation of U.S. aid for Ukraine.
Meanwhile, former Fox News host Pete Hegseth, whom Trump eventually chose as his nominee for defense secretary, has criticized American support for Ukraine. But Hegseth’s road to confirmation remains difficult because of a range of allegations of sexual misconduct, financial mismanagement, and excessive drinking, all of which he has denied.
In October, Trump Jr. told The Journal that he was focused on “preventing the bad actors from getting in” and that “There’s a lot of people that put the ‘R’ next to their name, but then they do whatever the swamp wants because they are looking for the next consulting gig or something such as that.”
Trump Jr’s efforts directed the path for Trump’s cabinet, with several people who have been interviewed for administration jobs also being asked about the Capitol riot and the 2020 election, according to The Journal.
On November 10, after Trump said Pompeo wouldn’t be joining his second administration, Pompeo wrote on X that he was proud to have worked with Trump.
“You and I built the plan that made the world safer and led to no new wars,” he said.
