The war with Iran has taken a significant toll on President Donald Trump's popularity with the American public, according to recent polls.
The fallout from the conflict will likely signal the end for Trump and the Maga Republicanism movement, according to influential conservative commentator Tucker Carlson. Despite the signing of a 14-point peace plan last week, the war's consequences will continue to damage Trump and firebrand pro-Maga Republicans who hail the former Apprentice host as their leader.
Carlson, who formally broke with Trump's Republican Party this week, warned the president about the consequences of going to war when hostilities erupted in February. He claimed that Trump already knew the risks and understood the big picture politics at play.
The Maga movement, credited with propelling Trump into the White House, is likely to suffer a similar fate, with Carlson stating that there is no future for the movement. He compared Trump's situation to that of former President George W. Bush, whose legacy was tainted by the 2003 Iraq War and 2008 financial crisis.
A joint Economist/YouGov poll put Trump's approval rating at just 37% this week, with nearly 60% of Americans disapproving of the president. The Iran War has opened up deep fissures within the Republican Party, particularly among supporters who want America to abandon its mantle as the world's policeman.
Carlson is among those calling for a change in direction, arguing that the US should not be involved in foreign interventions that are not in its interests. He claims that the US was led into an unwinnable conflict by others, including Israel, whose prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to remove the hardline Islamic clerics who rule the Middle Eastern nation.
Carlson has been a consistent defender of the Republican Party for 35 years, but he has now broken with the party over its handling of the Iran War. He believes that the US should not be making decisions based on the interests of other countries or its donors, but rather on what is best for the American people.
