(The Epoch Times)—At AmericaFest 2025, viewers have witnessed conflicts between major conservative commentators, including dueling speeches from Ben Shapiro and Tucker Carlson.
In an interview with The Epoch Times, Roger Stone suggested that the sound and fury signifies very little to much of the United States.
“I think a lot of this is inside baseball,” Stone, a longtime ally of President Donald Trump, said.
Stone said that he was in line at a grocery store the previous evening with seven people who told him they intend to vote next year in the midterm elections.
“Not a single one of them knew who Candace Owens was. Not a single one of them knew who Ben Shapiro was. A few of them knew who Tucker Carlson was, and they liked him,” he said.
“We gotta stop fighting amongst ourselves,” Stone added.
The Republican operative, who will speak on AmericaFest’s main stage on Dec. 21, assisted Trump during his brief exploratory campaign for president in 2000 with the centrist Reform Party before he withdrew due to party infighting. The party was founded by independent Ross Perot in 1995.
Stone also worked on Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Decades before that, Stone launched his career during President Richard Nixon’s 1972 reelection campaign.
The seasoned observer of conservative and libertarian politics said he was heartened by what he has seen at AmericaFest this year—the first since Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10, 2025.
He drew attention to the large turnout. More than 30,000 people were at the event, held at the Phoenix Convention Center in downtown Phoenix.
“It’s very, very encouraging as we approach the 2026 elections,” Stone said.
There is also evidence that TPUSA is reaching new audiences.
In the aftermath of Kirk’s death, TPUSA reported receiving tens of thousands of requests to open new chapters at schools throughout the United States.
On Dec. 18, the opening night of AmericaFest, Turning Point CEO Erika Kirk told the crowd that 80 percent of the event’s attendees had never been to a previous TPUSA gathering.
In Stone’s judgement, “This is the most dynamic gathering of young conservatives in American history.”
He traced that to Kirk’s assassination, saying it gave the conservative movement “determination that his death should not be for nothing.”
Recent off-cycle election losses have fed the perception that Republicans could face serious challenges in the midterms, including losing the House.
Stone, who advised Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign, said the atmosphere reminded him of the first few years of President Ronald Reagan’s first term.
“He enacted deep tax and regulatory cuts,” Stone said, recalling initial misgivings about those policies.
Then came an economic boom that by 1984 had changed the conversation.
“I think the president’s policies do take time,” Stone said, referring to Trump’s agenda.
After the interview, Stone, who has a tattoo of Nixon on his back, flashed the former president’s famous double V sign.
