Trump dismissed Tucker's and Megyn's criticism

Trump fires back at Carlson and Kelly over Iran strikes: 'MAGA is Trump'

President Trump dismissed criticism from Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly over U.S. military operations in Iran, telling journalist Rachel Bade of "The Inner Circle" at Substack on Monday that neither figure represents his base.

"I think that MAGA is Trump — MAGA's not the other two," the president said.

As reported by The Hill, the remarks came after both Carlson, a close ally of the president and vocal critic of Israel, and Kelly publicly broke with Trump over the ongoing strikes in Iran, which killed a number of top Iranian leaders and six U.S. service members on Saturday.

Carlson reportedly lobbied Trump against attacking Tehran in the days leading up to the operation. Trump was unmoved.

The President's Case: Trump framed the military action as a necessary detour, not a deviation from his agenda. He told Bade the stakes were too high to let media commentary dictate the course.

Trump dispatched with Kelly in a single line, noting, "she was critical of me for years, and I didn't lose. I won all three times by a lot." The point wasn't personal. It was structural.

Media criticism from the right didn't cost him in 2016, didn't cost him in 2020, and didn't cost him whatever mandate he carried into his current term. Voters decide what MAGA means, not cable news alumni.

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