Tensions boiled over at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest in Phoenix, Arizona, as prominent right-wing figures turned on one another in a dramatic display of infighting, conspiracy theories, and accusations of queerness — laced with homophobia and personal attacks.
In a fiery speech, Ben Shapiro denounced several high-profile figures within the conservative movement, accusing them of pushing conspiracies and undermining their supposed principles.
“The conservative movement is in serious danger… from charlatans who claim to speak in the name of principle but actually traffic in conspiracism and dishonesty,” Shapiro said, according to Politico.
Shapiro’s criticism reportedly targeted Candace Owens, for spreading conspiracies about the death of Turning Point’s founder Charlie Kirk, Tucker Carlson, for platforming neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes, and Steve Bannon, for mishandling information tied to convicted child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Milo Yiannopoulos Reignites Longstanding Feuds
Elsewhere at the event, far-right provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos — who has previously claimed to be “ex-gay” — made a string of sensational claims, including calling Nick Fuentes gay and levelling serious allegations at MAGA commentator Benny Johnson.
“One of the most distinctive things about the right wing in this country is its homosexual overtones,” Yiannopoulos said on MAGA podcaster Tim Pool’s show.
According to journalist Michaelangelo Signorile, Yiannopoulos accused Johnson of inappropriate behaviour during Turning Point’s Student Action Summit (SAS), alleging that he engaged in sexual activities with young men in hotel rooms while his wife cried in the lobby.
“Benny Johnson gets trashed and has sex with young boys… leaving his wife weeping in the arms of other men downstairs amid the AIPAC leaflets and trestle tables,” Signorile quoted Yiannopoulos as saying.
Yiannopoulos also claimed that Charlie Kirk was gay and was planning to divorce his wife, Erika Kirk, who had delivered the opening address at AmericaFest.
A Movement in Meltdown?
These public feuds reflect deeper fractures in the far-right ecosystem, where accusations of hypocrisy and extremism are colliding with performative moralism. Though accusations of homosexuality within right-wing spaces are often weaponised as insults, they point to the ongoing tension between the movement’s obsession with traditional values and its own internal contradictions.
Shapiro’s comments suggest growing alarm among establishment conservatives that the movement has been hijacked by conspiracy theorists and provocateurs. Meanwhile, the increasingly personal attacks suggest a cultural movement in freefall, struggling with identity, power, and relevance.
