Tucker Carlson Threatens Student Over Father's Alleged CIA Ties

Tucker Carlson spoke to a sold-out crowd at Indiana University as part of Turning Point USA’s American Comeback Tour, an event some reports linked to the organization’s recent leadership turmoil. During a student Q&A about U.S. support for Israel and Ukraine, a questioner alleged Carlson’s late father was in the CIA and asked whether the U.S. government wanted wars to end. Carlson pushed back angrily, saying “leave my father out of it” and warning “I’m gonna have to kick your ass… don’t test me,” while also agreeing with parts of the student’s foreign-policy critique. His father, Richard “Dick” Carlson, died in March at age 84 and ran the Voice of America late in the Cold War; there is no public evidence he worked for the CIA, though he acknowledged interactions with intelligence figures. Video and multiple accounts of the exchange circulated widely, and reporters said Carlson also clashed with other audience members during the event.