Tucker Carlson grills Ted Cruz for not knowing Iran's population in viral video: 'You don’t know anything'

WASHINGTON, DC: Conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson grilled Senator Ted Cruz over his lack of knowledge about Iran during a recent interview. This comes as Cruz has backed President Donald Trump’s hardline stance on Israel during the escalating conflict with Iran. 

The interview became combative as Carlson accused Cruz of backing foreign policy decisions without understanding the complexities of Iran, and stated that he didn’t know important details about "the country you seek to topple," NBC News reported. 

Tucker Carlson slams Ted Cruz for his lack of knowledge about Iran

Tucker Carlson posted a video on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday, June 18, where he asked Cruz, "How many people live in Iran, by the way?"

The senator replied, "I don't know the population," as Carlson interjected, "At all?" 

Cruz admitted, "No, I don’t know the population."

"You don't know the population of the country you seek to topple?" Carlson added.

The senator was asked again how he did not know Iran's population, and Cruz replied, "I don't sit around memorizing population tables."

Interestingly, the CIA estimated in 2024 that the country's population level was 88 million.

Further in the interview, the conversation got more heated as Carlson argued that the numbers are "kind of relevant because you’re calling for the overthrow of the government."

Cruz replied, "Why is it relevant, whether it’s 90 million or 80 million or 100 million—why is that relevant?"

Meanwhile, Carlson asked another trivia question, "What’s the ethnic mix of Iran?"

Cruz said that the country is Persian and "predominantly Shia," as Carlson asked, "What percent?"

The two were soon seen shouting at each other, as Carlson said, "You’re a senator who’s calling for the overthrow of a government, and you don’t know anything about the country."

Cruz responded, "No, you don’t know anything about the country. You’re the one who claims they’re not trying to murder Donald Trump…"

Carlson denied any such claims, and the tension soon intensified as the conversation turned to language and accountability.

Carlson challenged Cruz's use of the word "we" when discussing military actions against Iran.

He pointed out, "You said Israel was", and prompted a clarification that it is Israel conducting the strikes, with the US offering support.

However, the distinction didn’t satisfy Carlson, who added, "You just said 'we' were. This is high stakes. You’re a senator. If you’re saying the United States government is at war with Iran right now, people are listening."

Internet divided as Tucker Carlson grills Ted Cruz

People on the internet had a mixed reaction to Tucker Carlson grilling Senator Ted Cruz over his lack of knowledge about Iran during a recent interview.

A user wrote on X, "That was embarrassing for Ted," while one added, "What an utter embarrassment."

A person stated, "@TuckerCarlson just ended @tedcruz political career! This man is a joke for being a Senator in the most powerful country in the world. Exposed," whereas another mentioned, "Tucker’s classic expression of boyish confusion was literally made for moments like this."

One person wrote, "Tucker is unnecessarily disrespecting a Senator who has been anti-war all his life," while another commented, "@TuckerCarlson has gone down the same bizarre spiral that Glenn Beck has gone down. Sad to see. He is a brilliant man that has been reduced to Jimmy Kimmel theatre and gotcha moments."

One individual remarked, "This is ridiculous. If I was Cruz, I would have walked out” game a lot more convincingly than that Douglas Murray character," whereas another added, "Lol you did not know the answer either. And Ted Cruz is right, he does not need to know these kind of stats, because it's completely irrelevant whether there are 9 or 90 million inhabitants."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support online claims or opinions.