You know how I feel about post-Fox News Tucker Carlson, so let’s get that out of the way.
He has become a malicious purveyor of anti-Jewish conspiracy theories both through his own words and those he platforms to his nodding approval. He’s has normalized Jew-hatred among a swath of Gen Z youth in the Republican Party, while simultaneously sucking up to fundamentalist Islamic countries like Iran and Qatar. He also has attacked the Trump agenda relentlessly, to the point that Trump himself said Tucker has lost his way and is not MAGA.
Oh, and he’s a habitual liar, particularly on anything that has to do with Israel. Like when he recently falsely claimed to be “detained” at Ben Gurion Airport.
So yeah, Tucker is a waste product in my own opinion.
But is he a foreign agent? Certainly he serves foreign interests — not just of Islamic countries but also Russia. But did he break the law in failure to register under The Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), and possible violation of other national security laws?
Well, Tucker just released a video which seems to reflect a consciousness of guilt. Tucker claims the CIA is preparing a criminal referral to DOJ against him for acting as an agent of Iran based on his communications with Iranian authorities.
Tucker may be lying about it as part of his Main Character Syndrome disorder. Or maybe there’s something to it, or something in between.
I have posted various viewpoints below. My initial take, subject to more actual facts coming from someone other than Tucker, is that his communications with Iran (text or otherwise) were swept up and “unmasked” as part of American intelligence agencies (not just CIA) surveillance of Iran. Either someone illegally tipped him off to this, or he just assumes it to have happened and knows it will not look good.
In fact, it may look horrible – effectively painting him as disloyal to the U.S. even if not a criminal. So understanding how the media works, he’s getting ahead of it and portraying himself as the victim of the big bad Deep State because he stood up up to Israel. Setting the narrative and rallying his internet base in advance.
I first saw the video in a tweet from Ryan Saavedra, who commented:
He is either lying for attention or he is trying to get ahead of an explosive news story that is about break open
There certainly have been some very strange appearances by Tucker at the White House that made no sense unless Trump was using Tucker (unwittingly) to lull the Iranians into a false sense that no American attack was imminent.
Journalist David Alandete observed:
For months, I’ve been seeing Tucker Carlson show up at the White House during delicate moments. Not once, not twice. Several times. In sensitive meetings, on key days. I saw it myself, like in this photo I took. He was there when they were talking about Venezuela, about oil, about Iran.Among the journalists, the same question always floated around in hushed tones: what exactly is a television host doing here? Why is he in rooms where normally only officials, diplomats, or national security advisors are allowed?Carlson seemed convinced that he could play another role. That he could be an informal link, someone capable of calming Trump, opening channels, pushing deals. For years, he has defended that strategy of negotiating with autocrats, talking to dictators, exploring pacts like the ones he proposed with Russia or with the Venezuelan regime.But no.Now he himself has said something that changes everything: that the CIA has reviewed his messages with people in Iran and that there could be a criminal referral to the Department of Justice for those contacts before the war, under the law that regulates agents of foreign powers (FARA).If that’s true, many scenes from these months start to take on a different light. Those discreet entries into the White House. Those meetings where no one quite understood what he was doing there. And those conversations in which Trump seemed to give him information that later turned out to be incomplete or downright wrong.Within the administration itself, there’s talk of the possibility that Trump might have been feeding him misleading or incomplete information to throw off the ayatollahs before the attack. It would be a pattern that was already seen in another recent episode: when he agreed to speak on the phone with Nicolás Maduro in the middle of negotiations, sending messages through Ric Grenell, and shortly afterward ended up ordering his arrest.Moreover, this episode also has an internal reading in Washington. In the struggle within Trumpism between Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the situation is relevant. Carlson is close to Vance and has been for years one of Rubio’s harshest critics. If now his figure is called into question in this context, that indirectly strengthens Rubio’s position within the administration.” (emphasis added)
Drew Pavlov thinks Tucker was played expertly by Trump:
“The CIA knew Tucker was speaking to the Iranian regime.That means that when Trump invited Tucker to the Oval Office multiple times in the lead up to the Iran strike, he knew full well that Tucker was backchanneling information to the Iranians.Essentially Trump seems to have used Tucker as an unwitting counter-intel asset, to convince Khamenei that he was bluffing, that nothing would happen.Trump was basically able to kill Khamenei thanks to Tucker’s arrogance.Now Tucker’s also legally fucked.”
David Wurmser thinks Tucker is making it up:
“One thing right off: the CIA does not do Signals Intelligence. The NSA does.But I would not assume Carlson cares about that detail. Accusing the CIA makes the point more poignantly.But the question is valid: is it true even in that inaccurate form?Second, if it is, and that remains a big “if”, that would be a very guarded investigation. Few would know of it, and how Tucker would have been informed about his own investigation is a serious, warranted question of compromise by some officials.Senior U.S. elected officials generally do NOT have access to the identity of the U.S. person captured in such intercepts and the record is erased. If the activity captured in signal intelligence warrants criminal pursuit, then it is referred to the professional bureaus, not the political echelon. In some very unique circumstances, there are mechanisms then also for unveiling higher up to senior staffers and even the President , but really none exist to release or share info with the target.On balance then:1. This can be another of Carlson’s fevered delusions to nourish his martyrdom complex. There is no solid evidence such a tap occurred. But Carlson’s nervousness tells us less about whether such an investigation exists, than that it implies he had questionable conversations, but not necessarily illegal, with foreign elements.2. If such an investigation or sting exists, it would be closely protected , and if Carlson found out, then this and any leak would be a grave security violation and act of obstruction of justice.3. The political echelon would be among the last to know of such an investigation and in my view unlikely to be the source of a leak.”
Will Chamberlain and Jordan Schachtel think Tucker’s lying:
Mark Levin is calling it THE TUCKER CARLSON CONFESSION:
A couple of things come to mind regarding Tucker Carlson’s release of a video like this.1. Carlson released that video because he committed acts of betrayal against our country and in support of the Iranian regime; 2. he either knows, or it just occurred to him, that the NSC or CIA has his texts or may have his texts (presumably, they and others have been monitoring communications with the Iranian regime), thus have access to what he did or is doing; 3. he is a mentally ill drama queen looking for his next jump in followers, which seems the least likely.My guess is that one of his fellow isolationists in the government tipped him off (which would be a crime by the leaker) — possibly among his friendlies in the intelligence parts of the administration — and informed him that his texts were seen and shared with the Department of Justice. Unless he has been contacted by the government officially, how else would he know? Obviously, I have no way of knowing, but I am basing this, in part, on what Carlson has now publicly stated and the manner in which he is framing this.Carlson has already argued that he is a journalist and free to contact whomever he wishes and ask whatever questions he wishes. It will be interesting if not determinative to see what are in those texts. Was he giving advice to the enemy — the Iranian regime or its surrogates? Depending on the facts, this could run much deeper than FARA. Whatever it is, he is concerned enough that he is trying to get out in front of it.
Marc Caputo from Axios throws cold water on the claim that Trump used Tucker:
The online chatter about Tucker Carlson looked like quite a story: he was being spied on by the CIA & knowing that, Trump treated him as a useful idiot by feeding him disinfo that fooled the Iranians about the looming Feb. 28 attackBut top admin officials say it’s bullshit.Specifically, I’m told 1) there’s no CIA investigation of Carlson2) In his meeting, the two politely disagreed, & Trump held to his position Iran was a threat & didn’t mislead him Said one source: Trump “wasn’t participating in an op.”
Laura Loomer is taking “credit”:
“If Tucker Qatarlson gets charged for violating FARA and or leaking information to Russia, Saudi Arabia Iran or Qatar, I’m taking credit.Islamic sympathizers always project onto others what they are likely guilty of.You have no idea how relentless I have been in speaking to GOP reps and even reporting Tucker to law enforcement and the DOJ.I pray my efforts are successful.Tucker says the CIA read his texts to “set him up” for a crime.Sounds like someone is trying to get ahead of a story.Lock him up!”
LAST BUT NOT LEAST – SOME OF MY HOT TAKES ON X:
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