Tucker Carlson slams Ted Cruz for not knowing Iran's population in viral clip. Watch

Tucker Carlson confronts Senator Ted Cruz in a heated interview about his lack of knowledge about Iran.

In a tense exchange, conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson confronted Senator Ted Cruz over his vocal support for former President Donald Trump’s hardline stance on Israel during the escalating conflict with Iran. The interview quickly turned combative as Carlson accused Cruz of backing foreign policy decisions without fully understanding the complexities of Iran, bluntly stating that the senator didn’t know key details about “the country you seek to topple.”

Tucker Carlson challenged Senator Ted Cruz during an interview, questioning his knowledge of Iran's demographics while criticizing his support for military actions without understanding the complexities involved. (@TuckerCarlson/X)

Carlson blasts Cruz for not knowing Iran’s population

During an interview, which was released on Wednesday, Carlson grilled Cruz. The interviewer asked the Senator, “How many people live in Iran, by the way.” Cruz responded, “I don’t know the population,” to which Carlson added, “at all?” The senator admitted, “No, I don’t know the population.”

The exchange grew sharper when Carlson pressed Cruz with a pointed question: “You don’t know the population of the country you seek to topple.” Attempting to turn the tables, the same question was thrown back, only to be met with a swift and pointed answer: “92 million,” followed by the rebuke, “How could you not know that?” The reply came coolly: “I don’t sit around memorising population tables.”

However, the conversation only got more heated from here. Carlson argued that the numbers are “kind of relevant because you’re calling for the overthrow of the government.” Cruz simply answered, “Why is it relevant, whether it’s 90 million or 80 million or 100 million—why is that relevant?”

Carlson and Cruz engage in a shouting match

Following Cruz’s failure to answer the population question, Carlson threw another trivia question at him as he asked, “What’s the ethnic mix of Iran?” The Senator stated that the county is Persian and “ predominantly Shia” to which the interviewer asked, “What percent?”

The two were then seen shouting at each other, as Carlson fumed, “You’re a senator who’s calling for the overthrow of a government, and you don’t know anything about the country.” Cruz argued, “No, you don’t know anything about the country. You’re the one who claims they’re not trying to murder Donald Trump…"

Upon denying any such claims, Carlson added that “we are carrying out military strikes today.” The tension intensified as the conversation turned to language and accountability. Carlson challenged the senator’s use of the word “we” when discussing military actions against Iran. “You said Israel was,” he pointed out, prompting a clarification that it is Israel conducting the strikes, with the U.S. offering support. 

But the distinction didn’t satisfy the host, who pushed back: “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.”