Salty Politics with Julie Roginsky

04/23/2026

Tucker always knew who Trump was. He knew years ago, when he told me, with a smirk, that he voted for Trump because he wanted to piss off his neighbors in his ultra-liberal Northwest DC neighborhood. That was the main reason Tucker tolerated Trump: because he was an instrument of sticking it to the libs who he felt had dismissed Tucker’s talent at CNN, at MSNBC, and at every mainstream outlet he had passed through. Yes, Trump and Tucker agreed on a lot — whether it was the racism or the isolationism, back when Trump was still an isolationist. But Tucker never really trusted Trump to stick to his principles, because he always knew that Trump had none.

In messages that became public during Dominion Voting Systems’ lawsuit against Fox, Tucker wrote of Trump, “I hate him passionately.” He described Trump as “a demonic force, a destroyer.” Still, few people rehabilitated Trump more after the January 6 insurrection than Tucker, even though he knew better. In other words, Tucker had private clarity and public cowardice at the exact same time. He knew Trump was poison but sold him to his audience anyway.

So why is Tucker so publicly splitting with Trump now? The reason is not just a food fight between two grifters. It is about much more than that and it has major implications for MAGA going forward.