Conor McGregor’s hour-long interview with former Fox News presenter Tucker Carlson aired on Friday evening, with the outspoken fighter criticizing what he described as the Government’s “ill intentions,” reports Breaking News.
Carlson, a well-known right-wing commentator in the US who has previously interviewed Vladimir Putin, met McGregor at his Dublin pub on Tuesday to talk about the athlete’s plans to run for president later this year.
Filmed in the Grand Lodge of Freemasons in Dublin and shared on Carlson’s social media, the interview saw McGregor take aim at the Government, blaming it for the “erasure of Irish culture” and for what he referred to as “mass” immigration, reports Breaking News.
The ex-MMA fighter also said his goal to run for president might not be realized, claiming Ireland is “not a democratic country.”
He told Carlson, who was dismissed from Fox News in 2023, that “like a lot of countries in the western sphere, it [Ireland] is being governed by people with ill intentions of its people,” reports Breaking News.
The Dublin native claimed: “They have not got the interest of their people at, at its heart. However, our country stays strong.”
While discussing “Ireland’s economic crisis,” McGregor said that the rising cost of living was a “national emergency” but did not offer any specific solutions, reports Breaking News.
McGregor maintained a firm position on immigration, saying Irish people “do not feel like first rate citizens” and adding, “what is going on here is an abomination, a travesty, and it cannot continue for much longer”.
Carlson did not challenge any of McGregor’s statements and the fighter went on to accuse the Government of using “intimidation tactics”.
Speaking about his St. Patrick’s Day meeting with US President Trump in the Oval Office, which drew criticism from Irish Government officials and opposition parties, McGregor said: “We had a great moment in the Oval Office with president Trump where we got to speak before the press, in the White House where we got to speak our case, it was the first time it had happened in our history, really,” reports Breaking News.
When the topic of tariffs came up, McGregor commented that “tariffs are no good for nobody” but gave no concrete ideas about what actions the US or EU should pursue next.
“The people of Ireland are struggling to heat their homes. So there are many people who are seeing this tariff situation as a ‘we got you’ moment for our Government,” he said, reports Breaking News.
Regarding his potential run for the Áras later this year, McGregor said he believes that “the era of the politician must end”, though he acknowledged his presidential bid might face difficulties.
“There are stipulations. You have four county councils which are controlled by the Government parties or you have to get 20 nominations of the Oireachtas, which are mostly party affiliates,” reports Breaking News.
He also reiterated to Carlson that he doesn’t consider Ireland a democracy, adding that politicians “will have to answer to their constituents at some stage.”
When Carlson brought up CNN’s characterization of McGregor as “the leader of Ireland’s far-right”, McGregor responded: “All of these terminologies mean nothing to me. I’m a family man. I’m an employer of the country. I’m a supporter of many people and I care about my land and the safety of its citizens and the prosperity of its citizens,” reports Breaking News.
McGregor is presently contesting a civil case ruling that found him responsible for assaulting Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel room in 2018, with an order to pay damages. The case was not mentioned at any point during the interview.
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