We don’t need to wonder what Tucker Carlson genuinely believed about Donald Trump after the Republican’s 2020 defeat because we already know. As my MSNBC colleague Zeeshan Aleem noted last year, the since-settled Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit against Fox News produced a treasure trove of communications from the network’s hosts, including candid messages from Carlson that his viewers weren’t aware of in real time.
In early January 2021, for example, Carlson texted, “We are very, very close to being able to ignore Trump most nights. I truly can’t wait.” He added soon after, “I hate him passionately,” and he confessed that he “can’t handle much more of this.” This came on the heels of Carlson telling a colleague, in reference to Trump, “What he’s good at is destroying things. He’s the undisputed world champion of that.”
The former Fox host went on to say that he found it “disgusting” how many Americans believe Trump’s rhetoric.
Reflecting on Trump’s failed term, Carlson also wrote, “We’re all pretending we’ve got a lot to show for it, because admitting what a disaster it’s been is too tough to digest. … But come on. There isn’t really an upside to Trump.”
That was three and a half years ago. A lot has changed since. In fact, Carlson has not only taken his shtick online, he’s also managed to position himself as an influential ally to the Republican he hated “passionately.”
It was Carlson who helped Trump choose his running mate. It was Carlson who seemed to be having a grand time at the Republican convention. And as a New York Times report noted, it was Carlson who made a return to prime time with remarks at the Republican National Convention.
Mr. Carlson is freshly embedded in former President Donald J. Trump’s inner circle, and he delivered an unscripted monologue straight out of his old Fox News show, complete with off-color jokes and dark visions of a nation at risk of falling into tyranny should Mr. Trump not prevail in November.
To be sure, more than a few prominent Republican voices have made the transition from Trump critic to Trump sycophant. In fact, I’m aware of only one current member of the U.S. Senate who has characterized Trump as “America’s Hitler,” and the former president just tapped him as his running mate. Has Carlson experienced a genuine change of heart, or is he opportunistically sailing on the prevailing winds in Republican Party politics? Only the right-wing host knows for sure, though his 2021 messages seem to offer a hint. Either way, however, a HuffPost report raised a point that stood out for me. [Carlson] is poised to wield tremendous influence over a second Trump administration. When Trump … made a surprise visit to the convention on Monday, he waved at his adoring fans before making a beeline for Carlson, who was sitting in the stands, to shake his hand. Trump then walked a couple of seats over to greet his new running mate, Sen. JD Vance — a man whom Carlson told Trump to choose as the vice presidential nominee. The scene may have offered a preview of Trump’s inner circle if he is to win a second term.
We don’t know who the president will be next year, but if it’s Trump, it’s safe to say Carlson will have walk-in privileges in the Oval Office, his 2021 assessments notwithstanding.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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