Keith Girard
Fox News talking head Tucker Carlson was reduced to nervous giggles during take down by veteran journalist Brit Hume. (Photo: ScreenCap)
Tucker Carlson got a lesson in real journalism from veteran newsman Brit Hume, who scolded the Fox News propagandist for hate mongering in an appearance on Carlson’s own show. Carlson was reduced to nervous giggles by the take down.
From rampant conspiracy mongering to sowing division with outlandish claims about “Socialism,” race baiting and white supremacist dog whistles, Carlson, along with Fox News talking head Sean Hannity, is a hitman for the far-right.
But his penchant for branding anyone who rejects his agenda as someone who “hates” the country was too much for even the archly conservative Hume to stomach.
Carlson was facing a backlash for another white supremacist dog whistle, his outlandish commentary attacking the nation’s diversity. But if he was looking for sympathetic support from Hume, he didn’t get it.
“Tucker, you know I love you, but when you were talking about leaders who hate our country, I don’t think there are any leaders out there who hate our country, except in foreign lands perhaps,” the veteran newsman said.
“I think there are people who may have all the wrong ideas about how it should be governed, but I don’t think they hate our country, and I don’t really think it strengthens the case to say that they do,” he added.
Carlson was flabbergasted by the remarks.
“Whoa, no!” he countered. “No, I think they do!”
“If you have the richest people in our country desecrating our symbols and that’s considered a sign of heroism what does that say about the attitudes of the people doing it?”
“Those are acts of hostility against the country, I think,” Carlson added.
But Hume scolded him again.
“They are criticisms of the country, but whether they are acts of hostility, I must be permitted to doubt,” he said. “I just don’t think it rises to the level of saying ‘they hate our country.'”
“I think the word hate is flung around with much, too much abandon in our discourse today,” he continued.
Carlson’s ad hominem attacks not only include so-called “Socialism” and “leaders who hate our country,” but lately he’s been railing against “massive tech monopolies,” which are shining examples of American innovation and our free-market system.
He even went so far as to equate tech entrepreneurs like Bill Gates, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to 19th century Robber Barons. In fact, they’ve contributed astronomical sums to the nation’s wealth.
Tucker repeated a slogan straight out of the McCarthy era, claiming the country faces an “enemy within.”
“These are real threats to our country,” he asserted.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
It’s about time someone of Hume’s stature called out Carlson for what he is, a far-right hate monger.
Hopefully, it’s the first step in dialing back commentators who are sowing division in this country solely for partisan political gain.