Up Next
Charlie Kirk on Trump's Truth Social Message: The Gravy Train is Ending for Zelensky
9:36
Stephen A. Smith Sits Down With Candace Owens: Black Conservatives, Harvey Weinstein, and Why Democrats Lost
1:01:59
Tucker Carlson Reveals Why America's Leaders Care More About Ukraine Than Your Neighborhood
1:06:07
Related Books
Browse Conservative Books
Candace Owens Russia Trip Sparks Fierce Debate on Conservative Panel About Propaganda and Patriotism
Candace Owens' attendance at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and appearances on Russian state media RT have ignited controversy among conservative commentators. While Owens praised Moscow as "unbelievably beautiful" and claimed Americans are being lied to about Russia, critics like Laura Loomer accused her of working with foreign state actors. A panel discussion dissects whether Owens and Tucker Carlson have abandoned traditional conservatism for populist anti-Americanism, questioning their motivations and the propaganda value of their Russia visits.
Candace Owens Attends Russian Economic Forum
Conservative commentator Candace Owens has generated significant controversy after spending a week in Russia, including attendance at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on Thursday. At the forum, she participated in a panel discussion focused on family values. Owens has also made multiple appearances on RT, a Russian state media network.
During her trip, Owens posted enthusiastic messages on social media platform X, describing Moscow as "an unbelievably beautiful city." She later added: "The Christian expression and heritage here is unmatched. Unsurprisingly, they are lying to us about Russia."
Accusations of Spreading Russian Propaganda
The trip has drawn sharp criticism online, with many accusing Owens of spreading Russian propaganda. Trump ally Laura Loomer responded directly on X, writing: "Nobody cares if you vacation to Russia. Russia looks like a beautiful country. The issue is you appear to be working with multipolar state actors to create chaos in the US on behalf of another country. That's what people are concerned about."
The Tucker Carlson Comparison
During a panel discussion, one commentator questioned why Owens faces different treatment than Tucker Carlson, who traveled to Russia, conducted a gracious interview with Putin without much pushback, and similarly praised aspects of Russian society. The question raised whether both should be considered "formerly conservative" commentators.
One panelist responded by noting that Tucker Carlson embraced economic policies similar to Elizabeth Warren's redistribution agenda at least 10 years ago, moving toward economic populism and left-wing economic views. According to this perspective, both can be considered socially and culturally conservative but not American conservatives in the traditional sense. They have moved toward what was described as a "horseshoe element of politics" that appeals to both the left and fringe disenchanted elements of the right.
The Propaganda Playbook
One panelist argued forcefully that Owens is knowingly participating in Russian state propaganda efforts. The commentator stated: "If you don't understand what is going on here when Candace goes to Russia and is a guest of the state at this economic forum, is attending these different TV hits with RT, and she's talking about how surprised she is that it's a beautiful country and that the CIA must have lied to her all of these years about what Russia is like. If you fall for this, you are the mark for this kind of propaganda."
According to this view, Owens is aligning herself with the Russian state to participate in the demoralization of Americans, promoting the belief that American society, culture, family, and faith have been destroyed by elites, while Russia provides the model for how things should be.
A More Nuanced Perspective
Another panelist offered a more measured assessment, acknowledging that while Vladimir Putin is "a terrible person" who has violated borders close to NATO and actively bombed Ukraine while having diplomatic conversations with American leadership, there's also value in questioning what Americans are told about other countries.
This commentator pointed out that Owens has built her career on questioning narratives from both the Democratic and Republican parties, and her large audience is clearly interested in this approach. The panelist acknowledged that Owens could easily be falling for propaganda, noting how easy it is for host countries to show visitors only the best experiences. The commentator suggested that Owens needs to "do a little bit more and push a little bit harder" in her reporting, but expressed hope that when she returns and provides a full recap, it won't be just praise and will include critical assessment.
The panelist also noted that Owens has been critical of Putin in the past and questioned why she couldn't maintain a nuanced perspective going forward, comparing the situation to Tucker Carlson's Putin interview, which was also controversial but has been accepted within Republican conversation.
The Value and Danger of Putin's Platform
The discussion then turned to Tucker Carlson's interview with Putin, with one panelist defending aspects of it while criticizing others. This commentator saw public benefit in interviewing Vladimir Putin and letting him explain his view of Russian history and the world, arguing there was value in understanding how this influential world leader thinks.
However, the same panelist sharply criticized what Carlson did before that interview: visiting a Russian grocery store, expressing surprise at how nice the bread smells, refuting Cold War narratives about empty grocery stores, and marveling at grocery carts that return a quarter when returned—a feature common at discount stores like Aldi in America.
The commentator argued that Carlson, who "grew up rich, is rich, and does not have to go to discount grocery stores," isn't stupid enough to genuinely be impressed by such mundane features. Similarly, Owens "though she is vile, is not that stupid either." According to this analysis, both are knowingly aligning themselves with people who have embraced anti-Americanism to reshape American politics, aiming to destroy traditional Republican and Democratic Party establishments and rebuild them with something "far more populist and multipolar" that includes Russia at the table.
Candace Owens Backs Tucker Carlson for President
The discussion took an unexpected turn when a clip was played of Candace Owens expressing strong support for a Tucker Carlson presidential run. She stated: "I would be interested in strongly getting behind someone like Tucker Carlson though. And so I would love for him to run and I would create the dynamic that me and Charlie had and run all over to help him get elected."
When asked about the prospect of Tucker Carlson running for president, one panelist acknowledged his strengths as a communicator. The commentator noted that Carlson is "incredibly articulate" and "incredibly compelling when he is acting seriously behind a microphone," having given powerful speeches at CPAC, Heritage, and Cato events over the years.
According to this analysis, if Carlson threw his hat in the ring, he would be a real contender because he would capture "an energy around left-wing populism, which is all about giving people everything they want and not caring about the financial costs to the country and then a cultural conservatism going back to the basics on family and education and gender roles." The panelist acknowledged there's a huge audience for that combination but noted Carlson likely wouldn't get in the way of his friend J.D. Vance if Vance runs in 2028.
Questions About the Future of the Republican Party
The conversation touched on uncertainty about where someone like Tucker Carlson would fit politically. One panelist noted he wouldn't be embraced by the Democratic establishment, and establishment Republicans might not embrace him either. J.D. Vance was hand-selected by President Trump, which is how he made his way into the party's upper echelons.
This led to broader questions about what the next few years will look like for the Republican Party, particularly after Trump is no longer at the helm. Even after losing in 2020, Trump continued leading the party "even when he was silent for a while." With him eventually gone, the question remains what the party will look like under leadership from figures like Marco Rubio or J.D. Vance, which "might be totally different than what we're experiencing now."
Desire for a Better Class of Conservative Commentator
One panelist expressed frustration with the current state of conservative commentary, stating: "I just would like a better class of conservative commentator when it comes to the Tucker Carlsons and Candace Owens. I've just been so surprised by all of this."
The commentator pointed out that Owens could easily Google and discover that Russia has a higher abortion rate than the United States, a lower fertility rate, a lower marriage rate, and booming numbers of Islam with declining Christianity—facts that contradict her narrative about Russia as a model for Christian family values.
The panelist concluded with a harsh assessment: "When you say that she's just someone who asks questions, good for her. She doesn't want answers. She doesn't want answers to the questions that she has. The only thing that she wants to do is plant seeds of doubt amongst people in her audience so that they will continue to fund her with YouTube revenue. That's what she's doing. And it's sad."
The segment ended with one panelist noting that the entire panel seemed to be united in not being "in the Candace Owens fan zone," unable to find even one defender among the group.
Video Transcript
[00:05] Formally conservative commentator
[00:07] Candace Owens has stirred up controversy
[00:09] for taking a trip to Russia. Owens has
[00:12] been in Russia all week and was in
[00:13] attendance at the St. Petersburg
[00:15] International Economic Forum on
[00:17] Thursday, where she was part of a panel
[00:20] touting family values.
[00:21] >> She's also been making appearances on
[00:23] RT, which is a popular Russian state
[00:25] media network. Earlier this week, she
[00:28] heaped praise on the country writing on
[00:29] X that Moscow was quote an unbelievably
[00:32] beautiful city. She later added quote,
[00:35] "The Christian expression and heritage
[00:36] here is unmatched. Unsurprisingly, they
[00:39] are lying to us about Russia."
[00:41] >> But online, many are accusing Owens of
[00:43] spreading Russian propaganda. Trump ally
[00:45] Laura Loomer responded to her on X
[00:47] writing, "Nobody cares if you vacation
[00:49] to Russia. Russia looks like a beautiful
[00:51] country. The issue is you appear to be
[00:53] working with multipolar state actors to
[00:56] create chaos in the US on behalf of
[00:58] another country. That's what people are
[01:01] concerned about, and Loomer is
[01:05] absolutely right." And
[01:06] >> Wait, I have a question before you get
[01:07] started. Do you call Tucker Carlson
[01:09] formally conservative also? Because I
[01:11] don't understand I know you
[01:13] >> We talked about this two weeks ago.
[01:15] >> but why why are they not similar? I
[01:17] don't I don't I don't get that. Tucker
[01:18] Carlson has now been to Russia, sat down
[01:21] and interviewed Putin in a one-on-one
[01:22] that was very gracious interview, didn't
[01:24] really push back on him. Candace Owens
[01:26] is speaking at an event and saying she
[01:27] likes the way the place looks.
[01:28] >> Yeah.
[01:29] >> And they both talk about similar issues.
[01:32] So, is Tucker also a former
[01:33] conservative?
[01:34] >> Is Tucker formally conservative? Well,
[01:36] Tucker embraced the economic policies
[01:38] and redistribution agenda of Elizabeth
[01:41] Warren at least 10 years ago. He started
[01:44] moving in the direction of economic
[01:47] populism and left-wing views on the
[01:49] economy. So, if you to ask me, is that
[01:52] person a conservative? I will say, "They
[01:54] are a social conservative. They have
[01:57] culturally conservative views, but they
[01:58] are not an American conservative, which
[02:01] is actually a certain set of ideas that
[02:03] have to cohere. You can be right-wing
[02:06] and conservative coded, but not be a
[02:08] conservative commentator anymore. They
[02:11] have both sort of abandoned that space
[02:13] to appeal to a more horseshoe element of
[02:16] of politics where they can speak to the
[02:18] left and very fringe disenchanted
[02:21] elements of the right that, you know,
[02:22] Alex Jones previously used to talk to.
[02:25] Um, but the the question of Candace
[02:27] Owens being in Russia, I think that if
[02:30] you don't understand what is going on
[02:33] here when Candace goes to Russia and is
[02:36] a guest of the state at this economic
[02:38] forum, is attending these different TV
[02:42] hits with RT, and she's talking about
[02:44] how surprised she is that it's a
[02:46] beautiful country and that the CIA must
[02:48] have lied to her all of these years
[02:51] about what Russia is like. If you fall
[02:53] for this, you are the mark for this kind
[02:55] of propaganda. Cuz it's just very
[02:57] obvious what is happening here. She is
[03:00] aligning herself with the Russian state
[03:02] because she has a larger goal, which is
[03:05] to participate in the demoralization of
[03:07] Americans and the belief that American
[03:09] society, culture, family, faith, that
[03:13] those things have all been destroyed by
[03:15] some sort of elite in this country, but
[03:18] Russia is setting the model for how
[03:20] things should be. And she is cooperating
[03:23] with the state in advancing that
[03:24] message, and it is a propaganda effort.
[03:27] >> Vladimir Putin is not is a terrible
[03:29] person. We've seen his actions trying to
[03:32] violate as close as he can to NATO and
[03:35] agitate the US. We've seen the way that
[03:37] he's disrespected our president after
[03:40] they had multiple meetings and phone
[03:41] calls and gotten no changes, was
[03:43] actively bombing Ukraine while having
[03:45] those conversations. I understand that
[03:47] what's presented on a nice platter to a
[03:49] visitor is is what's actually happening
[03:51] and I cuz I see what's happening in our
[03:53] geopolitical environment right now. At
[03:55] the same time, you talk about how
[03:57] Americans constantly question all the
[04:00] things that we're told and our
[04:02] interactions with other countries. And
[04:03] Candace Owens has made a living out of
[04:05] questioning uh what people are saying
[04:07] and doing, whether it's the Democratic
[04:09] Party right now, largely it's been the
[04:11] Republican Party or actors around it.
[04:13] And so she's pursuing it in a way that I
[04:16] think her audience, which you can tell
[04:17] just by the sheer number of people that
[04:20] watch her on a daily consistent basis,
[04:22] are interested in seeing. And yes, she
[04:25] could easily be falling for propaganda
[04:27] that Russia is asking her to come on
[04:28] their state TV and inviting her to this
[04:30] event and showing her the best of the
[04:31] best times. As somebody who travels
[04:33] often, I understand that it's easy to
[04:35] show people that you want to accommodate
[04:37] a really great time. So it's our job,
[04:39] when we do our docu-series, to dive into
[04:41] historically what's happening in the
[04:42] country and what's happening right now.
[04:43] It's our job to talk to real people that
[04:45] are comfortable sharing messages with
[04:47] us, right? So Candace Owens needs to do
[04:48] a little bit more and push a little bit
[04:49] harder. But I think when she comes back
[04:51] and we have a full recap that hopefully
[04:53] doesn't look like just praise, we can
[04:55] get an understanding of how she felt and
[04:57] how she experienced. I mean, my
[04:58] grandmother used to always tell me when
[04:59] I was younger, go see for yourself. She
[05:01] can come back and be critical of
[05:02] Vladimir Putin. She has been critical of
[05:04] him in the past. Why can't she still do
[05:06] that? I mean, she can come back and just
[05:08] the same way she talks about a variety
[05:09] of topics, she can have a nuanced
[05:11] perspective like the public. And this is
[05:13] not the best way, but it also wasn't the
[05:14] best way for Tucker Carlson to sit down
[05:16] in a 60-minute style interview um on
[05:19] Elon Musk's platform in a gracious
[05:21] interview with Putin, either. But
[05:23] somehow he still accepted into uh the
[05:25] Republican conversation.
[05:26] >> You know, I So I think that that example
[05:28] right there is interesting. I actually
[05:30] thought there was a public benefit to
[05:32] interviewing Vladimir Putin in the way
[05:35] that Tucker Carlson did. He did
[05:36] certainly give him a bit of a massage
[05:39] and let Putin tell his story of Russian
[05:42] history and how he views it.
[05:44] >> Which people said that propaganda and
[05:46] lies and
[05:46] >> Yeah, and so so this is this is an
[05:47] interesting area of nuance. I'm glad you
[05:49] pointed out because I actually think
[05:50] that there was some value in having a
[05:54] Vladimir Putin who is this influential
[05:57] world leader. He is waging war on the
[05:59] Eastern Front
[06:01] of Ukraine. He has a huge role in
[06:04] shaping how things happen in the world.
[06:07] And to just let him talk, I actually
[06:09] think is something that is beneficial to
[06:11] everybody to see how he views the world
[06:14] and then be able to assess, you know,
[06:16] what the Russians think. But to go to
[06:19] Russia and then do what Tucker Carlson
[06:21] did I think preceding that interview
[06:22] which was to go to a grocery store
[06:25] and be surprised at how nice the bread
[06:28] smells as if they don't have bread and
[06:30] to actively refute the Cold War message
[06:34] about how they had empty grocery stores
[06:36] and go, "Well, there's no empty grocery
[06:37] stores here. Look at all this great
[06:39] food. Oh, and by the way, these grocery
[06:42] carts you put a a little quarter in them
[06:44] and then you get the quarter back for
[06:46] returning your grocery cart." As if he
[06:48] has never been to an Aldi. Like because
[06:52] he is a a silver spoon guy, grew up
[06:54] rich, is rich, and does not have to go
[06:56] to discount grocery stores where this is
[06:59] the norm.
[07:00] He's not that stupid and Candace Owens,
[07:03] though she is vile, is not that stupid
[07:05] either. She actually knows what she is
[07:07] doing and she is aligning herself with a
[07:09] group of people who have decided to
[07:11] embrace anti-Americanism for the purpose
[07:13] of reshaping American politics around
[07:16] the idea that the traditional left and
[07:18] right, the Republican and Democratic
[07:20] Party establishments need to be
[07:22] destroyed and rebuilt from scratch with
[07:24] something far more populist
[07:27] and multipolar in its place. And they
[07:29] want to have Russia at the table in that
[07:31] world. They have made their choice. They
[07:34] know what they are doing and I don't
[07:35] think these people are that stupid.
[07:37] >> All right, I want to play this soundbite
[07:39] that Candace Owens said and then we'll
[07:40] talk about that after it.
[07:42] >> Um I would be interested in in strongly
[07:44] getting behind someone like Tucker
[07:45] Carlson though. Um and so I would and so
[07:47] I would love for him to run and I uh
[07:50] would
[07:51] create the dynamic that me and Charlie
[07:53] had and run all over to help him get
[07:54] elected.
[07:56] >> Okay, Tucker for president now.
[07:57] [laughter] She took it up You said what
[07:58] you said and then she took it up one
[08:00] level. She upped you five.
[08:02] >> I'm losing my mind, people.
[08:04] >> What do YOU THINK ABOUT THAT?
[08:06] >> [laughter]
[08:06] >> WHAT DO YOU THINK about that? No, I
[08:07] Tucker Tucker Carlson uh for president.
[08:10] So
[08:11] he is an incredibly articulate guy. Uh
[08:15] he is incredibly compelling when he is
[08:18] acting seriously behind a microphone. I
[08:21] have seen him give speeches. He would do
[08:23] things like CPAC and different
[08:24] conservative conferences over the years.
[08:26] He used to be a guy who'd speak at
[08:28] Heritage and Cato here in Washington,
[08:30] D.C. And when he's not doing the class
[08:33] clown routine, which he often does in
[08:35] some of his his talks, you know, he's an
[08:37] incredibly powerful communicator. And
[08:40] [snorts] if Tucker Carlson were to throw
[08:42] his hat in the ring for president at
[08:44] some point, I think he would be a real
[08:46] contender because he would be capturing
[08:49] an energy around left-wing populism,
[08:51] which is all about giving people
[08:53] everything they want and not caring
[08:55] about the financial costs to the country
[08:58] and then a cultural conservatism going
[09:00] back to the basics on family and
[09:03] education and gender roles and stuff
[09:05] like that. There's a huge audience for
[09:07] that. But I also don't think he's going
[09:09] to get in the way of his friend J.D.
[09:10] Vance. If J.D. Vance is is going to be
[09:12] running in 2028, we won't see Tucker
[09:15] doing that.
[09:16] >> Well, that's what I was going to say.
[09:17] Where does he run? It's certainly not
[09:18] going to be embraced by the Democratic
[09:19] establishment in D.C. or the party.
[09:21] >> it Give it time.
[09:22] >> Yeah, and then also with the Republican
[09:24] party, I'm not sure if establishment
[09:26] type Republicans will definitely embrace
[09:27] him. J.D. Vance was hand-selected by the
[09:29] president. Um so that's how he made his
[09:31] way. But like what happens next? That's
[09:33] why I'm so fascinated about what the
[09:34] next few years look like specifically
[09:36] for the Republican Party because we've
[09:38] had Trump at the helm even after he lost
[09:40] in 2020 leading the ship even when he
[09:43] was silent for a while. So now with him
[09:45] gone, what does it look like under the
[09:47] leadership of right now Rubio or Vance?
[09:50] Um and it might be totally different
[09:51] than what we're experiencing now.
[09:52] >> I don't know. I I just would like a
[09:54] better class of
[09:57] conservative commentator uh when it
[09:59] comes to the Tucker Carlson's and
[10:01] Candace Owens. I'm I've just been I've
[10:02] been so surprised by all of this. Um you
[10:05] know, Candace Owens can easily Google
[10:07] and find out that Russia has a higher
[10:09] abortion rate than the United States. It
[10:11] has a lower fertility rate and a lower
[10:13] marriage rate and booming numbers of
[10:16] Islam and declining Christianity. She
[10:18] can find that out. You can Google that.
[10:20] And when you say that she's just someone
[10:22] who asks questions, good for her. She
[10:24] doesn't want answers. She doesn't want
[10:26] answers to the questions that she has.
[10:28] The only thing that she wants to do is
[10:30] plant seeds of doubt amongst people in
[10:32] her audience so that they will continue
[10:34] to fund her with YouTube revenue. That's
[10:36] what she's doing. And it's sad.
[10:39] >> All right.
[10:41] >> [laughter]
[10:42] >> Not They're not in the Candace Owens fan
[10:43] zone this whole show. We got Aaron, we
[10:45] got Robbie, we got
[10:46] >> I'm a big fan.
[10:47] >> Steven, no one We can't get one fan.
[10:49] >> [laughter]
[10:50] >> All right. Well, more bad news for
[10:52] Graham Plathner as a New York Times
[10:54] report takes a deep dive into his dating
[10:56] history. We'll be back after this.
Comments
Be the first to comment on this video.