Tucker Carlson urged US officials to oppose any efforts by President Donald Trump to authorize large-scale attacks that would harm Iranian civilians, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday.
"Now it’s time to say no, absolutely not, and say it directly to the president, no," said Carlson, further stating that officials should tell Trump to “figure out the codes on the football yourself,” referring to the briefcase containing the nuclear launch codes.
In comments on his podcast on Monday, Carlson also condemned Trump’s recent remarks about opening the Strait of Hormuz, calling them “evil” and accusing Trump of mocking both Christianity and Islam.
Trump responded to Carlson's accusations in an interview with the New York Post on Tuesday, dismissing Carlson as “a low-IQ person who has absolutely no idea what’s going on.”
“He calls me all the time; I don’t respond to his calls," said Trump. "I don’t deal with him. I like dealing with smart people, not fools.”
According to the WSJ report, longtime Trump ally turned critic Marjorie Taylor Greene called on Tuesday for Trump's removal after the President made additional threats against Iran in a Truth Social post on Tuesday.
“Not a single bomb has dropped on America," said Greene. "We cannot kill an entire civilization.”
Trump: Iran’s ‘whole civilization’ will die tonight
Trump's Tuesday Truth Social post threatened that "a whole civilization will die tonight" if Iran does not open the Strait by 8 p.m. EST Tuesday night, adding it would "never" return.
"I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will," Trump said. "However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?"
"We will find out tonight," said Trump, "one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World."
Iran responded to Trump's threat by cutting off direct diplomatic communications with the US, a move designed to signal its disapproval and defiance, according to the WSJ.