The Blaze Ascending

A review of the summit, and more.

With Tucker Carlson’s recent firing from Fox News, and the quick shift to promoting everything from transgenderism to an increased support for American involvement in the war in Ukraine, the established conservative media ecosystem has been thrown into an interesting place. With Fox News being the prime time “conservative” television resource, for an age bracket demographic that is increasingly aged and not representative of where mainstream right in this country is moving towards or what it has been transformed into since Donald Trump first ran for president.

While there have been smaller media groups out on the scene for some time, ranging from NewsMax to the OAN, the successor to Fox News has been still up for grabs. The Daily Wire, while known for its favorite hypothetical thinker Ben Shapiro, has stayed in the same place that it’s always been, and has been pursuing a relatively wide array of cultural positions to stake into ranging documentaries to trying to break into the film industry. Whether it is Ben Shapiro’s positions the covid shots, DeSantis, or just being “The Daily Wire” they have kept themselves more on the cultural/political axis, with a lot of beltway politics in between. Ted Cruz for example, is quite a recurring guest over there on DW, plus seeing the deranged tweets of Dr. Jordan B. Peterson tells me there’s not much room to expand to your audience to a younger demographic or the conservative base.

Then of course there’s the merchandising…

It kind of reminds me of this.

However the one conservative media organization that decided to take the reins, jump on the wild horse of the media wilderness was Glenn Beck’s The Blaze. It was an impressive summit just yesterday on Friday, the entirety of the media presence was there from their new Editor in Chief Matthew Peterson to a man who got his start as a guest video on The Distributist’s channel, Auron MacIntyre. Tucker Carlson, who is allegedly trying to start his own media group with Neil Patel (that connection alone deserves a whole article) was the star of The Summit - interviewing almost every republican candidate for president except Donald Trump. Tucker brought his signature laugh, and his uncanny ability to narrow down the issues of the base and ask those questions.

The Blaze on July 14, 2023 held the first Presidential Forum for Republican Candidates in Iowa, alongside many other groups so that that vital first caucus state could get a taste of the candidates. You can watch the whole thing here:

I know most of my readership and my following isn’t the world’s biggest of rank punditry, thinking that it’s a waste of time being some kind of Soyjaked “Voooooter” but you can ignore politics all you want that doesn’t mean politics will ignore you. America First was the main theme of Tucker’s interviews, especially in the backdrop of the Biden Administration calling up the reservists and the IRR for Operation Atlantic Resolve. If you want more information on what that means, I will embed a good video explaining it in detail.

Tucker did an incredible job at asking key questions, especially about the war as Republican, Conservative and even Progressive voices begin to ask the question as we do with every long and bloody proxy conflict, “what the hell are we doing?” Especially considering that we’re doing a very good job at pissing off a nuclear power, Tucker was quick to ask about the war in every interview. I will give Auron props for the great use of phrase “The Nation versus the Empire” with respects to how almost every candidate was focused on the national posturing of the geopolitics of the US, rather than the shitshow that’s happening right here at home.

So let’s get started with the interviews, shall we?

Senator Tim Scott

Senator Tim Scott is the GOP’s only Black Senator, “representing” the state of South Carolina. He made himself look a bit awkward in the interviews in part because he didn’t stay seated and look at Tucker when answering the questions, but rather got up and stood to face the candidates. Smart call, but it did make for some rather humorous screenshots of Tucker wondering why the hell isn’t he just sitting down like you would for any panel discussion.

Senator Scott played into his race, offering a strange conservative colorblind take on the issue of systemic racism like it was 2014. “We have had a black president” along with numerous other positions in his state government that were headed by black individuals. It was truly a blast from the past rhetorically. What wasn’t a blast from the past, was the geopolitically posturing of the country’s elite when it came to Russia, Ukraine, and China. Peace talks would be “premature” and we need to strengthen the Atlantic Alliance.

I don’t think anyone was particularly interested in what he had to say, let alone the fact that the Senator couldn’t answer the question that all candidates need to ask: Why are you running for the President of the United States?

Governor Asa Hutchinson

I think it’s safe to say that if you didn’t see the clips or the livestream, it was a murder.

Transgenderism being one of the biggest cultural issues that’s first and foremost for a lot of people, especially as we’ve seen assaults happen in schools which were covered up, parents listed as domestic terrorists or arrested by the FBI, alongside cases like Jeff Younger’s child being taken from him in custody so that his ex wife can transition the kid. It is evil, it is sacrificing your children to Moloch with extra steps, the reinvention of the Eunuch Class to keep these people permanently attached to the Therapeutic State lest they succumb to “genocide.”

“I want to get to the issues” will be the words that sank his campaign, although he really only ran because of the Trump Indictments. Dude that vetoed a bill that would protect children from castration and munchausen’s syndrome by proxy, (alongside white liberals sacrificing their bloodlines for social status) so he was grilled rather intensely.

Next!

Fmr. VP Mike Pence

I don’t know why he’s running. Most of the base view him as some kind of Judas Iscariot, who refused to do what Trump suggested he do with respects to sending the votes back to the state legislature, only for the Senate to quickly change the rules after Biden was in office to ensure such a thing couldn’t happen. He was good back when he was governor, and had gotten notoriety for his “Anti-LGBT” laws and served as a good “establishment whisperer” for Trump during his time in the White House.

Tucker got to the issue of Christianity with Pence, especially with respects to the De Jure leader of Ukraine, President Zelensky. Zelensky, who is jewish, has been in the midst of controversy within the Orthodox Christian world over the state of the Church in Ukraine. There has been arrests of Metropolitans, Priests, and the Kiev Lavra Caves and Monastery have been more under state control now than they have since the times of the USSR. Pence had a moment or two changing his pronunciation of “Kyiv” and “Kiev”, but was assured that religious liberty was “being respected.” This went straight back to the war itself, and supporting Ukraine and its sovereignty.

Pence of course decided to blow his campaign by simply saying “That’s not my concern” when it came to the country’s sordid state affairs with respects to the nation’s geopolitical stance on Russia.

Again, I don’t know why he’s running. A point raised by one of The Blaze pundits was that when Democrats run and they know they don’t have a chance, they run on pet issues - ranging from gun control to climate change to UBI. He doesn’t know what makes Pence, or Scott, or Hutchinson stand out at all other than just anti-Trump sentiments.

Rhetoric Shift

The “Isolationist” (a slur if you ask some paleocons) tendency was on full display, alongside the position on immigration. When the discussion about the candidates’ need, and if they were to become president not only build a wall but to actually deport the millions already in the country was a massive shift in rhetoric. In just a few short years the mainstream right in this country went from “diversity is our strength” to acknowledging Anti-White laws, practices and trends, and saying the the words “the great replacement” and recognizing the left’s celebrations over demographic shifts.

Bullying/Groyping works.

Additionally there was a lot of discussion about the 2020 election, the fact that they weren’t free or fair and that everyone’s campaign needs to have the will to actually fight it to the bitter end. After all what’s the point in running if you’re not going to fight obvious attempts at election “fortification”?

Perhaps it was the fact it was in Iowa, it’s the primaries, but that folksy protestantism that comes with Republican Candidates was on display. Tucker said he was reading the Bible for the first time in his life (how true this I don’t know.) The word “amen” was used a lot, and Tucker asked Asa Hutchinson “what do you pray for?” which I thought it was a great question. Delano Squires had a good line about the need for a “Genesis” style basics for families about knowing who made you and that Man is made in God’s image, and Woman in Man’s. He had a fun line about “Uncle Sam being an Absentee Father” but I’ll let you make your own remarks there.

Fmr. Governor Nikki Haley

The first thing I noticed was that her accent was cranked up to 11. It’s fake, much like the rest of her. She was on point though in answering the 2020 question, and addressed her background in foreign policy as the former Ambassador to the United Nations by saying that “that people not having faith in elections is the first crack to a country falling apart” referencing UN standards for democratic states. She did say that Biden won the 2020 election, so take that what you will depending on your take, however I find that somewhat laughable.

She had a great rejoinder to the election stuff about saying that there was work to be done, and when Tucker cast aspersions, “Well no, but what has Congress done for you lately?” was good on her. That sort of stuff might help her in the debate stage if she gets there, but she will have to find a way to call out her former boss without being dragged down into the nitty gritty of his level. She did well at answering the questions, but considering her track record on issues ranging from the conservative flag to helping push the decriminalization of homosexuality abroad, the culture war issues will be her weakpoint.

She was good to get to the administrative state, something that had been talked about but she was quick to use her gubernatorial experience about having to staff people and flush bad actors out of the system. Acknowledging that there was “zero trust” in the Intelligence Community was also good. She’s not my gal for this race but she has more campaign and executive experience than a lot of these candidates, save for Pence.

Vivek Ramaswamy

With two individuals of Indian descent running for the GOP Nomination it makes you wonder if caste discourse will finally get big this election cycle. Although why he hasn’t tapped into the prolific Morrowind meme makers for his campaign is beyond me. Vivek is an interesting character, and I want to like him purely on his optimism alone…and then I’m reminded that this would be the same person that Richard Hanania wants as President of the United States and then I get worried.

Vivek has a strange sense of optimism, which is necessary if you want to be president and not just someone in the Venture Capital crowd. He is a millennial, talks about Pascal’s God Shaped Hole, and while he is not Christian (at least not in any meaningful sense) he adheres to this sort of Civic Nationalism with a dash of Christian Therapeutic Moral Deism. However his personality and his policy proposals are what really make him interesting as he seems to be a fashioning himself as the ideas guy/policy wonk of this election cycle. He feels in a way like the GOP’s YangGang, but I have to give him credit for absolutely nailing his time on with Tucker. He did well on the subject of January 6, which you can see here below.

One of his plans includes military action against the cartels and a more militarized Southern Border, but still being open up for high skilled immigration. At the same time, he is also the “can’t we all just get along” type of civic nationalism that I’m not sure still exists, but to him it does if we just adhere to free speech and open discussion, and getting things back in order. He almost feels like a unity candidate, but nevertheless he did well in terms of performance. If he makes the debate stage, we’ll see how it goes.

Ron DeSantis

I don’t know where to start, which is why I find it funny that the #2 man for the nomination was last. He has an issue with his image, I don’t find him relatable and he has that weird sort of social autism that has some people doing the “literally me” meme with him. However he did do a lot better with the mic, and stuck to the stories that he knew he could work off of to springboard his gubernatorial successes. The idea of “converting people to vote republican” feels a lot like the age old debate about “redpilling the normies” so I’m somewhat skeptical, but GOTV are of course necessary.

DeSantis gave a good answer on the foreign policy question touting his own military service, with an emphasis on Fallujah and Seal Team 1. He touts the same line about the war as others did, that American border matters more than the border of Russian and Ukraine. His Hunter Biden joke was awful as he tried to illustrate his position on getting adult material out of schools, but his appearance here was certainly better than his Twitter space announcement. With Ron DeSantis running it raises a particular important question - where and who do other Republican Governors turn to? His role as an executive illustrates that he as one of the best state political machines I’ve seen from a republican in years. When Ron DeSantis does something other governors like Greg Abbott do the same. Why waste that? Of course the allure and the corruption of the Ring will do that to anyone, especially when someone whispers in your ear that Faustian bargain of “I can make you President of the United States.”

He was rather weak on the Intel Agencies, I don’t know how you can reform something so powerful that it spies on American Citizens and the World with ease and without warrants, but what’s the rule of law for anyways?

DeSantis will struggle, but I think he’s only just beginning to find his voice and his footing in this campaign. However with polling and the mood of the Caucus Goers, this is still Trump’s to lose (lest he’s arrested.)

Winners and Losers

Let’s start off with the obvious winner here: The Blaze

They did a fantastic job with their coverage, organization, and getting their media personalities and hosts together for over 8 hours of coverage and having Tucker be the interviewer. They are ascendant in the right wing media sphere, and I have a feeling in the coming months they will be what people talk about instead of Hannity of Ben Shapiro. There has been moves from the Claremont wing of the right to have a much larger presence, and it appears that its presence will be seen not just in The American Mind, but in The Blaze as well. A special shout-out to Glenn Beck’s best investment, Auron MacIntyre for pushing the discussion rightward, focusing on some of the best aspects of the Dissident Right into a mainstream direction, and for getting a bunch of boomercons to listen to people like Morgoth’s Review and myself.

Good job guys, and thank you Rob for sharing.

Winner: Tucker Carlson

I was not happy at all with the Andrew Tate interview, and while under difficult circumstances with the contract stuff over at Fox, he did a fantastic job representing where the GOP Base is, what standard they should be held on, from issues ranging from Covid, Ukraine, to the 2020 Election. He killed the campaigns of Asa Hutchinson, Mike Pence, and Tim Scott, so we’re thankful that.

Losers: Asa Hutchinson, Mike Pence, and Tim Scott.

Neither of them could give good answers to why they’re running, I still don’t know why they’re running save for niche issues or Anti-Trump sentiments, while advocating for the establishment and hawkish positions that make the GOP all the more detestable. Pence and Asa have given their foes soundbites to use against them for the rest of the campaign cycle.

Winner: Vivek Ramaswamy

For a guy with no real expectation or shot at being president, he did a good job setting himself up for something greater down the line. Perhaps when he drops out his renewed presence in the public consciousness will allow him to build something akin to New Founding, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. He went above the low expectations I have for him in his performance, although I think he is brutally unprepared for what the enemy will throw his way and it is best that continues to be an ideas/policy guy for this new brand of conservatism.

Mixed Bag: Trump

I don’t know if I would even use the word loser here, but I think he did a disservice by not going. However it was also incredibly beneficial to him because by not being there, the voters can have Trump live up to their expectations while not seeing him on stage to be potentially disappoint. Tucker Carlson did more work for making other candidates be more Trump-Like, so he’s got that going for him. The real question becomes, how does he avoid prison when the entirety of the State wants him in jail and gone forever?

Final Thoughts

This was a good showing from The Blaze, some of the candidates, and was worth my actually listening and paying attention. The election cycle always brings the best and worst out of candidates, writers, staffers, etc., so to see the first major Republican forum be held with Tucker holding candidates’ feet to the fire was a pleasant opening move and sets the example for what future forums should be.

The Conservative Media Ecosystem is changing, and hopefully for the better. The question becomes now, do our politicians and new crop of leaders and staffers have what it takes to actually win? That is the only question that matters both in this election and all things we do on the right.