It’s entirely understandable that Kremlin Faux News correspondent Tucker Carlson was so upset with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s speech before a joint session of Congress Wednesday night; Zelenskyy’s appearance on the world’s biggest stage that evening, as well as the fact that the inspirational leader is even alive and apparently thriving, put to lie everything that Tucker has repeated for his Russian masters since the war began last February – namely that Putin’s forces would rout the Ukrainian Army, that Zelenskyy would be killed or captured in days and that Ukraine would be firmly in Russian possession by Easter if not before.
Greg Sargent at The Washington Post concisely enumerates the many things Carlson has been wrong about in the past year and illuminates just why the Frozen Fish heir is so angry:
“Carlson’s rant carried a more hateful edge than usual, a kind of shrill fury. Perhaps that’s because Zelensky’s presence before Congress was far more humiliating to Carlson and his ideological comrades than to anyone else: It demonstrated how badly they misjudged Ukraine’s will to resist Russian conquest and the durability of the U.S. commitment to our beleaguered ally.
This represents the failure of a worldview, a strain of far-right authoritarian populism, that goes well beyond Ukraine. A whole lot of things have happened that — in Carlson’s mental universe — were not supposed to happen.“
I can’t quote the entire article, but among the things Sargent points out that Carlson misjudged were:
1. As stated above, the resilience and skill of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in fighting for their homeland.
2. His prediction that U.S. voter would soon grow weary of our support for Ukraine when in fact more than 2/3rds of them still approve.
3. His prediction that voters would “repudiate” the Democratic Party in the midterm election, when in actuality the almost direct opposite happened.
4. The rejection by voters of 17 of the 18 midterm candidates he promoted on his show, the lone exception being Ohio Sen.-elect J.D. Vance, who had to have massive infusions of cash by his mentor Peter Thiel and the Republican Party to stave off Tim Ryan, and…
5. His promotion of right wing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro in his reelection bid, which was instead won by the leftist candidate.
All in all it was a shitty year for the Tuckman, as Sargent notes:
“None of this should prompt liberal overconfidence. Future electoral losses are inevitable. Cultural liberals need a proactive case against charges of wokeness. The war will grind on. Trump may still evade accountability. Carlson-style politics is being wielded effectively by a certain presidential aspirant in Florida who is crouched in the wings.
But a year ago one couldn’t have predicted that Carlson’s brand of politics would be repudiated in so many ways. If that prompts a bit of, dare we say, Carlson-grade smugness from his critics, well, it’s well deserved”.
Acyn’s followers are a bit more concise in their assessments:
In this world, not all elections are considered free and fair
Yet, Zelensky was elected in a 2nd round election widely considered to be very fair, receiving over 70% of the vote totals
Zelensky is a democratic president elected in a democracy
No wonder @TuckerCarlson hates him
— Guido (@TrajanGregory) December 23, 2022
Yup
Tucker Carlson is really on fire trying to break his record of being the featured American tool on Russian Propaganda Television for unbroken, consecutive nights.#MoscowRose
— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) December 23, 2022
I believe in Tucker’s continued ability to be wrong about, well, everything, Betty.
— Momma (@CathyPedro16) December 23, 2022
🤣🤣🤣
👇👇👇
— Keeping Them Honest (@jnltoy) December 23, 2022
Workout clothes? Perhaps Tuck is unaware that Zelenskyy has been fighting for his life & his country for almost a year and he really hasn’t had time to shop with a bounty on his head. Tucker is jealous because he wants to be a real man and it’s obviously never going to happen.
— Lily🌻 (@LilyinIndiana) December 23, 2022
Yup
I don’t know Tuck, how can any American sit there and listen to a less than mediocre white dude whine and lie every week? You’d know better than us.
— Audra Vote Democracy 🏳️🌈💙🏳️⚧️🌊 (she/her) (@audgeblue) December 23, 2022
👍👍👍
Would love to hear Tucker’s actual definition of “dictator”… I suspect he’s been misinformed somewhere along the way.
— Myles Davies (@mylesdavies) December 23, 2022
Yup
— Republic of Gilead (@Whitmore98) December 23, 2022
🤣🤣🤣
Nah. They love it.
He aches for a fraction of the gravitas and heroism tha Zelensky embodies. He wants to be a Great Man of History, but deep down inside he knows he will be a footnote while Zelensky is historic. It EATS at him. His only defense? Snark, snide takes.
— GlobeHotter (@GlobeHotter) December 23, 2022
Exactly.
I give you Viktor Orbán, Hungarian dictator, who spoke at the CPAC in Dallas. So I ask, how can any 'self-respecting American', have sat in the audience?
— Cincigal – The real Cincigal #NotTheParodyCincigal (@na52g) December 23, 2022
Yup
You know, Tucker, if your opinion is wrong on almost everything, maybe bein an opinion show host is not really your thing.
Just sayin’.
He has no self respect. All he has is a platform, the cash he gets from the Kremlin, and the mirror where he practices his smug and bemused facial expressions.
A little boy that never had to adapt to the real world because he was born rich. There’s no way he, in his pampered existence could possibly understand the hardships and continuing adversity Zelensky faces daily. Sound familiar? And of course all of know the rich are entitled and want all the power that comes with it. Fucker Carlson is no exception. His biggest challenge is should I go to my vacation homes or jet off to a warm part of the world to escape the cold? I’ll call Ted and meet him in cancun.