Backlash Ensues After Trump Meets With Controversial Christian Nationalist Live Streamer

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.), Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), and Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) among others, have all come out against former-president Donald Trump’s dinner with Ye West, who brought Christian Nationalist live streamer Nicholas J. Fuentes as one of his multiple guests. Trump has since made a statement saying he “didn’t know who Nick Fuentes was” on his Truth Social.

Trump went on to add:

“Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, was asking me for advice concerning some of his difficulties, in particular having to do with his business. We also discussed, to a lesser extent, politics, where I told him he should definitely not run for President, “any voters you may have should vote for TRUMP.” Anyway, we got along great, he expressed no anti-Semitism, & I appreciated all of the nice things he said about me on “Tucker Carlson.” Why wouldn’t I agree to meet? Also, I didn’t know Nick Fuentes.”

Many of the political figures mentioned haven’t liked Trump since his 2016 presidential run, or following the January 6th protest. The most notable included Liz Cheney, who called the dinner “indefensible,” along with Mitt Romney, who called the dinner “disgusting,” adding, “There’s no bottom to the degree to which he’s willing to degrade himself, and the country for that matter.”

When then-presidential candidate Joe Biden met with Cardi B for a sit-down interview, following Cardi B publicly admitting to drugging, raping, and robbing men, the previously mentioned political figures along with the media stayed largely silent – despite Cardi B committing legitimate crimes that go far beyond simply being intolerant.

Fuentes, however, does have politicians in his corner. Both Rep. Margorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) have spoken at Fuentes’s annual political event, AFPAC. Along with notable United States House of Representatives members, Senator-Elect J.D. Vance (R-OH) has spoken out against Fuentes being wrongfully banned from Twitter.

Reporting from the dinner is slim, as there were no reporters present at Mar-A-Lago. Topics of discussion at the controversial Mar-A-Lago dinner are widely unknown.

On Saturday, Fuentes said on his live stream, America First, that he believes the Axios reporting of the dinner was the most accurate of the reporting currently available.

From the Axios report of the Mar-A-Lago dinner, Axois along with an unnamed source who is not believed to have been a guest at the dinner released:

Fuentes told Trump that he represented a side of Trump’s base that was disappointed with his newly cautious approach, especially with what some far-right activists view as a lack of support for those charged in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

• Trump didn’t disagree with Fuentes, but said he has advisers who want him to read off teleprompters and be more “presidential.” Notably, Trump referred to himself as a politician, which he has been loathe to do in the past.
• Fuentes also told Trump that he would crush potential 2024 Republican rivals in a primary, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Trump asked for Fuentes’ opinion on other candidates as well.

Trump at one point turned to Ye and said, “I really like this guy. He gets me,” according to the source.

• “To be honest, I don’t believe the president knew who the hell [Fuentes] was,” the source added.

Trump asked if Fuentes was on social media such as Truth Social, the former president’s alternative to Twitter.

• Fuentes told Trump that he was on Truth Social but had been banned from the social media platform Gettr because Trump adviser Jason Miller, the CEO of the company, wasn’t a fan of his.
• Trump asked whether it was because Fuentes was on the “fringe” of his supporter base, the source said. Fuentes acknowledged that he was, saying he’s “one of those people who got banned from everything.”
• Ye claims in the video that Trump was “really impressed” with Fuentes because “unlike so many of the lawyers and so many people that he was left with on his 2020 campaign, he’s actually a loyalist.”

Fuentes also added in his Saturday live stream, “I didn’t mean for my statements and my whole background to become a public relations problem for the president.”

Controversy surrounded Trump and Fuentes in February as well, when Truth Socal made the decision to verify Nicholas J. Fuentes’s Truth Social account.

Nicholas J. Fuentes is the host of America First, a live stream that has garnered controversy due to statements and clips taken from the show. Fuentes, like many right-wing figures, has been banned on Twitter, and when his clips from his live stream are posted, he is unable to clarify the clips.

Instances of Fuentes clips being used by the media most notably include during January 6th news coverage, implying that his words lead to the riot. Fuentes, as documented by his video coverage as well as the coverage of those who went with him, showing that he was not rioting. The popular live streamer was streaming the event onto his DLive channel, as many other streamers were doing regardless of political orientation. Since January 6th, Fuentes was placed on the no-fly list, labeled a “White Supremacist” by the Justice Department, despite not being charged with any crimes following January 6th. Fuentes would go on to also be banned on Twitter, but has maintained hope that he will be able to recover his account within the near future due to new Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s goal to recover the thousands of wrongfully suspended accounts on the social media platform.

J.D. Vance came out in support of Fuentes after his unnecessary banning from Twitter:

Alexander J. Williams III