Did Trump’s Allies Help Break Andrew Tate Out of Romania?

“Reject weakness in any form.”

“The world is hypercompetitive. If you’re going to be a man who’s going to sit and say, ‘I’m just sad,’ you are always going to lose in competition to men like me.”

“My sister is her husband’s property.”

“There is no such thing as an independent female.”

This is all Andrew Tate, the controversial “manosphere” influencer, whose content has racked up billions of views online. His blend of self-help rhetoric and shock-value provocation has earned him notoriety, millions of followers, and millions of dollars.

In the 2010s, Andrew rose to prominence alongside his brother, Tristan, through viral clips on TikTok, X, and YouTube, preaching ideas about how to make money, build physical discipline, and become a “high-value man.” He did this while also running a webcam porn business, which involved getting women to perform on camera for paying customers. And he sold courses teaching other men how to build similar operations—a course he dubbed PHD, for “pimping hoes degree.”

In December 2022, the brothers were arrested in Romania. The subsequent investigation alleged that they trafficked dozens of women. Andrew was also accused of rape and having sex with a minor. Romanian authorities blocked the brothers from leaving the country while the investigation was underway. But in February 2025, the ban was lifted—with little explanation—allowing the Tates to make their way back to the U.S.

Megan Twohey is an investigative journalist at The New York Times. Twohey and Isabella Kwai just published a major investigation into how the Tate brothers sought to forge relationships with right-wing influencers and members of the Trump family—and whether those connections played a role in their travel ban being lifted.

I ask Twohey how Andrew Tate—a former kickboxer—became one of the internet’s most polarizing figures; I ask about the accusations against Andrew and Tristan Tate spanning three countries; about Andrew’s reported relationships with Donald Trump Jr. and Barron Trump; about the meetings between Trump envoy Richard Grenell and Romanian officials that may have paved the way for their return to the United States; and how the Tates—and their lifted travel ban—divided the right.

It’s a conversation you won’t want to miss.