Tim Pool Briefly Walks Off Jubilee Debate Over Accusation He's Profiting From 'Civil War' Panic
Key Takeaways
- •Tim Pool briefly walked off the set of a live Jubilee "Surrounded" debate after influencer Mason accused him of pushing "civil war" rhetoric to make money, and he returned minutes later.
- •Mason noted that 42 of Pool's video titles contain the phrase "civil war," while Pool insisted he never called for civil war and said his warnings were based on Atlantic reporting citing national security experts.
- •The debate format pitted Pool against 20 progressives to discuss which political party is more prone to violence, with the pair also clashing over historical comparisons ranging from the Hamilton-Burr duel to the 2020 fatal shooting of Aaron Danielson in Portland.
- •Federal charges unsealed in September 2024 allege two RT employees funneled $10 million through Tenet Media to right-wing commentators, including funding for Pool's Culture War podcast, but Pool and other contributors were not accused of any crime.
- •Pool has said he was unaware of the Russian funding source and considers himself a victim.
Right-wing podcaster Tim Pool briefly walked off the set of a live Jubilee debate on Sunday after an influencer accused him of manufacturing "civil war" panic to line his pockets.
Pool, a former Vice News and Fusion journalist who first drew attention livestreaming the Occupy Wall Street protests, went on to build the Timcast network of podcasts and YouTube channels into a right-leaning media operation with a combined audience in the millions.
The confrontation unfolded on Jubilee's "Surrounded" series, a format that places one guest in a room with 20 people who disagree with them. The series has produced some of the Los Angeles-based digital studio's biggest hits, including a widely viewed 2023 episode featuring conservative commentator Ben Shapiro. Sunday's installment pitted Pool against 20 progressives to debate which political party is more prone to violence. According to a report from Mediaite, the show's host introduced Pool as "politically moderate."
Instagram influencer Mason, known as OneHandPolitics, pressed Pool on his long-running warnings that the United States is "tracking toward a civil war," noting that 42 of Pool's video titles contain that phrase.
"I'm saying that you say bulls--t in order to get money," Mason told him.
Pool pushed back, insisting, "I've never called for civil war," and said his "tracking toward" language stemmed from Atlantic reporting citing national security experts. The magazine has repeatedly examined the prospect of U.S. political violence, including its December 2019 "How to Stop a Civil War" package, and political scientist Barbara F. Walter's research on how civil wars begin has kept the question in mainstream debate. Mason was not swayed: "There comes a point where people stop taking your prediction seriously."
The two also sparred over historical comparisons. Mason invoked the 1804 Hamilton-Burr duel and Andrew Jackson's presidency to argue that polarization is nothing new, while Pool cited the 2020 fatal shooting of Trump supporter Aaron Danielson in Portland as evidence of political violence.
As the exchange grew heated, Pool got up and left the set — the segment begins at the 52:30 mark — telling the room to "subscribe to Timcast" and "follow us on Instagram" on his way out. He returned minutes later, prompting Mason to greet him with, "Thank you for returning."
The grifting accusation lands amid ongoing scrutiny of Pool's business dealings. Federal prosecutors say Pool's Culture War podcast was funneled money through Tenet Media as part of a $10 million scheme by Russian state media employees to pay right-wing commentators to spread pro-Kremlin content. The charges, unsealed by the U.S. Justice Department in September 2024, named two employees of the Russian outlet RT but did not accuse Pool or the other Tenet contributors — among them Dave Rubin, Benny Johnson and Lauren Southern — of any crime. Pool has said he was unaware of the funding source and considers himself a "victim."
