November 7, 2025

(A portion of an email I sent to my Institute staff was published by media outlets last week. Below is the full text of my November 7, 2025 email.)

The recent interview Tucker Carlson conducted with Nick Fuentes caused deep concern among conservatives and among the general public.  For anyone not familiar with either the individuals or the issue, I strongly encourage you to watch Ben Shapiro’s podcast, episode number 2309, which addresses this interview directly. You can view it here.

Ben does a fine job of letting Nick and Tucker’s own words speak for themselves, then explaining clearly why the views expressed are inconsistent with conservative principles.  Such ideas, if left unchallenged, would inflict serious, long-term damage on our country.

The issue is not whether individuals have the right to speak—they do.  The question is whether moral people and serious institutions should associate with or legitimize ideas that contradict the foundational principles of ordered liberty and human dignity.

The words we choose matter.  Just because a person can say something does not mean he should.  Every individual and organization in this country has the right—and also the responsibility—to decide with whom they associate and whom they decline to support.

The Leadership Institute made that decision about Nick Fuentes nearly eight years ago.  We became the first conservative organization to identify, expose, and expel Nick Fuentes from our programs. His hateful views and conduct were—and remain—incompatible with our Leadership Institute mission.   They represent a danger to conservative principles and to all who labor in good faith to advance liberty.

Nick Fuentes and anyone who attempts to promote, excuse, or normalize his hateful views have no place at the Leadership Institute.