“Conservative” commentator Tucker Carlson is facing sharp criticism following remarks he made during his interview this week with Mike Huckabee in which he floated the idea of conducting widespread DNA testing in Israel to determine biblical lineage connected to land claims.

During a podcast episode titled “Tucker Confronts Mike Huckabee on America’s Toxic Relationship With Israel,” Carlson suggested using genetic analysis to identify “who Abram’s [Abraham’s] descendants are,” citing the promises described in the Book of Genesis. “Why don’t we do genetic testing on everybody in the land and find out who Abram’s descendants are? … We’ve cracked the human genome. We can do that,” Carlson said.

The comments arose in the context of a larger exchange about Jewish identity, ancestral claims to the land and comparisons to Palestinian heritage. Carlson maintained that some Palestinians could potentially trace deeper genetic roots in the region than certain Jewish immigrants from Europe. He questioned how theological arguments about ancestry align with Israel’s demographic framework if lineage is central to the claim.

Huckabee rejected the premise, voicing discomfort with grounding national or civil rights in biological lineage. “I have no idea what that would prove… I’m comfortable with secular nation states where it’s none of this is done on the basis of blood. I’m uncomfortable with that,” he said. Huckabee instead pointed to archaeology, religious tradition and longstanding historical continuity as the foundation for Jewish ties to the land, distancing himself from Carlson’s proposal for genetic screening.

The reaction was swift. Among those criticizing Carlson was pro-Israel activist Laura Loomer, who accused him of advancing ideas reminiscent of eugenics and antisemitism. She argued that the suggestion would effectively require “every single Jew to take a DNA test.”

In a series of social media posts, Loomer labeled Carlson a “rabid Jew hater.” Other critics connected the controversy to earlier remarks Carlson made in a December 2025 interview, when he discussed regulations on commercial DNA testing in Israel related to privacy and identity issues. While such testing is regulated in the country, it is not banned.

{Matzav.com}