Conservative commentator Bill O’Reilly took aim at former Fox News colleagues Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly during an interview with Piers Morgan, arguing that neither should be viewed as journalists while addressing what Morgan described as growing divisions within the political right.
The exchange came after Morgan noted that several prominent conservative figures have become increasingly critical of President Donald Trump and the Republican Party.
Morgan pointed to recent interviews he had conducted with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly, saying he was struck by what he viewed as a significant shift among some high-profile conservative voices.
“It’s quite extraordinary to me to see people like that on the conservative right in America turning against the Republicans to the degree that both Marjorie Taylor Greene and Tucker both say they won’t vote Republican again the way things stand,” Morgan said. He added that both Greene and Carlson had turned against Trump, who has also criticized them, and asked O’Reilly what he believed was behind what he described as a “real fracturing of the right in America.”
O’Reilly declined to speculate about the motivations of his former colleagues but made clear that he sees a distinction between their work and his own.
“Well, look, I can’t speak for them as far as their motivation is concerned,” O’Reilly said. “I can tell you that they’re not journalists! None of them are. They are personalities and very successful personalities.”
O’Reilly went on to describe his own approach to covering current events, saying his reporting is based on direct conversations with senior officials and other sources.
“So, I mean, I back up everything I say by conversations with the president of the United States, one-on-one. Or Pentagon, or Mossad, or whatever the weapons inspectors in Austria, or wherever vehicle is going to give me information,” he said. “And I pass that information along to my viewers and listeners.”
The longtime commentator also rejected the idea that his work is driven by online engagement or partisan politics.
“I’m not in it for clicks,” O’Reilly said. “We make an extraordinary amount of money because we present a very, very methodical analysis of what is happening. We’re not involved with party politics, I couldn’t care less about the parties.”
Instead, O’Reilly said his primary concern is the ongoing situation involving Iran and preventing future threats.
“I just want the Iran thing to stop. I want the United States and every other country to have an element of safety against these terrorists in Iran,” he said.
O’Reilly referenced his book, “Confronting Evil,” noting that it features Iran’s supreme leader alongside Adolf Hitler, Mao Zedong and Vladimir Putin.
“Ayatollah’s on a cover with Hitler, and Mao, and Putin,” he said. “And they’re all evil, and they’ll all kill you in a heartbeat. And if you get an opportunity to take them out… You do it.”
Turning to Trump’s handling of Iran, O’Reilly suggested the president believed he had an opportunity to act but acknowledged the situation had proven more difficult than expected.
“Trump thought he had an opportunity. It’s harder than I believe he thought it was going to be. I know that’s true,” O’Reilly said. “Doesn’t mean you give up.”
He also dismissed concerns that Iran could militarily shut down the Strait of Hormuz.
“As far as the Hormuz thing is concerned, there’s just no way that Iran has the power to close that strait,” O’Reilly said. “It’s all about insurance companies, it’s all about writing policies for the tankers to go through. It’s up to you guys. But militarily, are they gonna close that? No, they can’t.”
