Ever since Fox News took Tucker Carlson off the air last month, there has been widespread speculation about his future plans. Networks like Newsmax quickly offered a home to him and his show, though it was later revealed that Tucker is still technically employed by Fox News, and thus, still under contract. Carlson is reportedly suing the network for breach of contract and to achieve his release, and he has since revealed his intention to bring his show directly to Twitter.
But there were some who thought that Tucker was destined for something bigger, and soon after his removal from the airwaves, a grassroots effort to draft him as a presidential candidate emerged. Draft Tucker PAC started raising money and even produced an ad. Tucker himself had even joked about a presidential run earlier this month when asked by Matthias Schwartz of Business Insider. “Yes. Announcing Friday in New Hampshire,” Tucker told him, but later revealed in a text he was only joking. “Totally kidding. Sorry. I can never control myself. I’m fundamentally a d—. My apologies.”
Despite Carlson making it clear his quip had been a joke, Draft Tucker PAC’s efforts continued. But now Carlson’s lawyer has revealed that he has no intention of running for president, and the PAC has been issued a cease-and-desist letter.
Related: O’Keefe Video Catches Fox Producer Spilling Why Carlson Got the Boot
The letter, sent by attorney Harmeet Dhillon, made clear that Tucker will not be a candidate in the 2024 presidential race.
“Mr. Carlson will not run for President in 2024 under any circumstances, and therefore your misrepresentations are damaging to Mr. Carlson and defrauding his supporters,” the letter stated. The letter also warned of legal action if the solicitation of funds under Mr. Carlson’s name continued.
“If you do not immediately cease and desist your efforts to solicit money to ‘draft’ Mr. Carlson, we will use every legal means at our disposal to vindicate his rights and protect his supporters from these misrepresentations,” the letter stated.
Additionally, the PAC was accused of unauthorized use of Mr. Carlson’s name and image for their own benefit, including potentially selling donor lists in the future. Following the demand from Mr. Carlson’s legal team, the Draft Tucker spokesman, Charlie Kolean, confirmed that all activities on his behalf would be ceased as requested. Despite their efforts, the PAC had only managed to raise a small amount of money, with a total of $212 collected online, supplemented by a personal contribution of $35,000 from the PAC’s chairman, Chris Ekstrom.
Although the PAC had produced an advertisement praising Tucker Carlson and intended to run it on the conservative Newsmax channel for a week, they requested that the ad be pulled following the legal developments.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member