Buckley Carlson, the 20-something son of Tucker Carlson, has exited Vice President JD Vance’s press team and plans to start his own political consulting firm, according to multiple media reports.
Carlson’s exit comes amid Donald Trump’s repeated bashing of his father, a former Fox News host, including on Friday when the president called him “a low-IQ person.” Buckley Carlson was hired in January 2025 to be Vance’s deputy press secretary.
A mid-term exit from a White House press role is not uncommon – nor is he alone – as several staffers have come and gone from various positions at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue as Trump’s second term gets into its second year. But it was first reported in the middle of a heated war of words between Trump and his former vocal supporter; as recently as last week, Tucker Carlson entertained the question of whether the president could be the antichrist.
The once-close relationship between the conservative commentator and the president began unraveling with Trump’s decision to attack Iran, which Carlson later said he had strongly lobbied against. Carlson has also suggested that Trump may be compromised or under the control of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Flailing Fools like Tucker Carlson, who couldn’t even finish College, he was a broken man when he got fired from Fox, and he’s never been the same — Perhaps he should see a good psychiatrist!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post earlier this month.
Buckley Carlson began his tenure on Vance’s comms team since the very beginning of the second Trump administration, though his work was almost entirely behind-the-scenes. His exit was first reported by Politico, which said he was preparing to leave last year but stayed on to help with the transition to new team members.
Buckley Carlson’s exact age is not public, though he’s believed to now be in his late 20s. He had previously worked for then-Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) as deputy chief of staff, and became his communications director in 2021.
During his tenure under Vance, Carlson reported to Taylor Van Kirk, Vance’s press secretary, who previously worked as the communications director for his 2022 Senate campaign and as his press secretary during the presidential campaign.
