A deepening rift on the right is exposing fresh fractures inside the Republican Party, as conservatives argue over a proposed new political party led by Tucker Carlson and aimed at challenging the MAGA movement built by President Donald Trump.
Several high-profile conservative critics of the president gathered over the weekend to discuss the contours of a new political movement. The group included Carlson, the former Fox News host, former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, Congressman Thomas Massie and Joe Kent, who previously served as Trump’s counterterrorism chief.
Greene shared a photo of the meeting at Carlson’s cabin in Maine, framing the gathering as a stand against Trump’s foreign policy record. “We said no more foreign wars, and we meant it and supported Donald Trump because he made that promise. But he’s betrayed us all,” she wrote.
“Our commitment is America First for all Americans, right, left, and center. The movement has begun,” Greene added.
The backlash was swift. Conservative social media erupted with anger, as Trump loyalists accused the group of betraying the movement they once helped energize.
The White House, Meghan McCain, Laura Loomer and a wave of prominent conservative influencers condemned the gathering, branding the participants as “traitors.” McCain went further on a podcast, saying those involved were “the biggest pieces of garbage in the conservative movement.”
Still, the revolt against MAGA also drew support from other influential voices on the right, underscoring just how unsettled the conservative landscape has become.
“That’s a great group of Americans!” far-right commentator Alex Jones wrote in response to Greene’s post.
Donald Trump’s biggest right-wing critics are plotting their political futures. Pictured are (1) Carolyn Grace Moffa, (2) Brian Glenn, (3) Marjorie Taylor Greene, (4) Tucker Carlson, (5) Joe Kent, (6) Heather Kaiser Kent, (7) Thomas Massie
Greene was a former close ally of the President until he turned on her, labeling her a ‘traitor’ after she supported the release of the Justice Department’s files on Jeffrey Epstein
‘I’ll be part of whatever this party below represents… America First > MAGA,’ shared Trump’s first-term National Security Adviser Mike Flynn.
‘Great group,’ commented popular influencer Sneako.
The divide underscores the split allegiances emerging in the Republican Party that has been dominated by Trump for the past decade.
What unites all of those who convened at Carlson’s cabin are their shared beliefs that the President has reneged on his campaign promises to lower prices and keep the US out of new wars.
Kent, who resigned from the Trump administration earlier this year in opposition to the US war against Iran, recently said that he and other attendees had urged Carlson to run for the White House in 2028.
‘I’d say all of us at one point in time told Tucker he needs to run, and Tucker’s been pretty public that he’s not going to run,’ Kent said on a recent appearance on The Young Turks show.
‘So, we all made our pitch to Tucker as to why he should run, and hopefully he wakes up one day and Tucker says he’s going to run.’
Still, Carlson said as recently as late June that he was not planning on a presidential bid.
Greene and Massie recently visited Costa Rica together, along with their spouses
Tucker Carlson announced a 10-point policy platform on his show on Wednesday, just days after he was urged to run for president in 2028
Capitalizing on the momentum stirred from the weekend post, Carlson announced a 10-point policy platform on his show Wednesday evening.
The platform consisted of different buzzwords, including fair, sovereign, productive, beautiful, healthy, honest, optimistic, wise, decent and united.
The former Fox News host has turned into a beacon for Republicans discontented with Trump’s tenure.
He has slammed Trump for not representing an ‘America first’ agenda, has apologized for his past support of the Republican and has recently come out against many of his policy objectives, particularly the Iran war.
Carlson has also become a vocal critic of Israel and the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, popular positions among the Republican base.
However, despite all the fanfare, the White House does not see the new group as a threat.
‘The President is committed to maintaining Republican majorities in Congress and continuing to lower costs for working families,’ White House Spokesman Davis Ingle has said.
‘Meanwhile, this photo represents an embarrassing collection of mostly whiny turncoats who dramatically overestimate their influence and relevance.’
