The White House went on the offensive against Tucker Carlson for downplaying the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that they “concur with the Capitol Police and the broad array of bipartisan lawmakers … who are continuing to stand by this misrepresentation of the unprecedented violent assault on our Constitution and the supremacy of rejected the law that the Police rejected. sentenced officers to their lives. .”
Jean-Pierre also questioned Carlson’s credibility, saying she agreed with Fox’s own lawyers and executives, who have repeatedly emphasized in various courts that Tucker Carlson lacks credibility on the matter.
She quoted a 2020 NPR report: “You literally can’t believe the facts that Tucker Carlson is telling you. That’s what his lawyers are saying.” It was a report about Fox News lawyers defending Carlson against a defamation lawsuit. In a ruling in favor of the network, a federal judge in New York wrote: “Fox makes a compelling case that given Mr. Carlson’s reputation, any reasonable viewer will come[s] with some skepticism about the statement he makes.”
She also cited a Washington Post report about the recent disclosure of emails and text messages in Dominion’s lawsuit against the network. David Clark, Fox News’ senior vice president of weekend news and programming, said in a statement that he does not consider the Carlson and Hannity shows to be credible news sources.
“To say what he said when we saw Capitol Police officers being killed is just shameful,” Jean-Pierre said.
On Monday night’s broadcast, Carlson downplayed the attack on the Capitol, telling viewers, “It wasn’t insurgents. They were tourists. Images from inside the Capitol disprove the story you heard from January 6.” He played the first Capitol surveillance footage that day after being granted exclusive access by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
But Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger blasted Carlson for his portrayal of the day’s events and footage of Brian Sicknick, a police officer who died the day after the attack. A number of Republicans also rebuked Carlson over the footage, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said it was “a mistake by Fox News to portray it in a way that is completely contrary to the opinion of our chief law enforcement officer in the Capitol”.
The White House has generally refrained from naming Fox News numbers specifically, even as the stream of opinion leaders regularly lashed out at Joe Biden.
On his Tuesday night show, in response to the outcry about his segments, Carlson said, “So it’s not really about left and right.” This is not about Republicans and Democrats. Here you have people with common interests, the people with open borders, the people like Mitch McConnell, who live in the glory of Chinese money, the people who all have everything in common among themselves, all on equal footing with everyone else, and that includes in almost every news organization in this country.”
Source: Deadline
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
