Illinois Representative Adam Kinzinger said this week that he wants popular Fox News host Tucker Carlson to “account for” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “side” in the internationally condemned invasion of Ukraine.
Republican Kinzinger has repeatedly slammed Carlson over his comments about Putin and Russia, accusing the Fox News host of aligning with the Kremlin. The Fox News host and clips from his show have been repeatedly used by Russian state-run media in the lead-up to the invasion and the ongoing war.
Fox News’ Tucker Carlson Tonight It continues to be one of the most-watched cable news shows in the country, coming in at No. 1 with nearly 3.5 million viewers last week. Meanwhile, Carlson has drawn considerable criticism for his remarks on Putin and Russia’s ongoing attack on Ukraine.
“Pure, vain evil. Everyone who took Putin [sic] The side in American politics needs to be taken into account. all the people,” Kinzinger wrote In a Twitter post on Wednesday evening. She then added: “And talking heads like @TuckerCarlson @TulsiGabbard etc.”
Former congressman Tulsi Gabbard, a Hawaii Democrat, has faced a similar backlash to Carlson for sharing her thoughts about the Russo-Ukraine war. Gabbard appeared on Carlson’s show after the conflict unfolded. Both have been accused by critics of being on Putin’s side.
“The heroes of #Ukraine keep fighting. While @TuckerCarlson keeps them loving Putin,” Kinzinger said In another tweet on Wednesday evening.
Over the past several days, the GOP congressman has shared many of Carlson’s memes and quotes about Russia and Putin. kinzinger on monday shared a meme With quotes from 2019 hosted by Fox News.
“Why do I care what’s happening in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia? And I’m serious. Why do I care?” Carlson said at the time. “Why shouldn’t I root for Russia? Which I am.” While Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began on 24 February, Moscow has militarily supported Ukrainian separatists in eastern Ukraine since 2014.
Just before Putin’s invasion of Ukraine last month, Carlson faced backlash when he questioned why Americans should oppose the Russian leader.
“It might be worth asking yourself, because this is getting very serious, ‘What exactly is this? Why do I hate Putin so much?’ Has Putin ever called me a racist? Has he threatened to fire me for disagreeing with me?’,” Carlson asked.
However, as the invasion began, Carlson criticized Putin and his actions. Putin “is to blame for what we are seeing in Ukraine tonight,” he told his audience on February 24, warning the situation “could become a world war.”
“Vladimir Putin started this war, so he made whatever decision he made,” Carlson said. “He fired the first shot.”
Several journalists and Russian media analysts have reported that Carlson is featured prominently on Russian state television as the conflict in Ukraine continues. Julia Davies, Russian media analyst and columnist for The Daily Beast, “Every program I saw today on Russian state TV had a clip of Tucker Carlson cursing Ukraine.” tweeted on Wednesday.
Carlson complained in mid-March, “Anyone who suggests that there may be way less than a total war out of this disaster is immediately condemned as a tool of Russian propaganda.”
On March 21, Carlson also said, “At one level you can understand why people are killed in emotional frenzy when they talk about Ukraine, why wouldn’t they? Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was shocking. “It was wrong, the suffering of the citizens there is totally real, we’re seeing this on TV, it’s horrifying. So it’s totally natural for Ukrainians to drive out the invaders and, of course, we invaders, Russia.” Rooting for them to get out.”
Janos Kamar / Alex Wong / Getty Images
As Putin’s invasion of Ukraine enters a second month, analysts largely conclude that Russia has “failed” to achieve its objectives in its initial military campaign. The Russian president reportedly underestimated the resistance received from Ukrainians, thinking that his forces would gain massive control of the country in a matter of days.
Instead, after a month’s war, the Ukrainian army continues to fight the Russian invaders, as ordinary Ukrainian civilians have also taken up arms to join the fighting. Meanwhile, the US and its NATO allies have transferred billions of dollars in arms and humanitarian aid to aid the Eastern European nation in its fight against Moscow.
On Wednesday, NATO said it estimated Russia had lost between 7,000 and 15,000 troops since the invasion of Ukraine began. To put that number in perspective, the Soviet Union lost about 15,000 soldiers in a decade-long war in Afghanistan between 1979 and 1989. Less than 2,500 American soldiers were killed in the two-decade war in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021.