During an appearance on WABC Radio on Tuesday, Tucker Carlson expressed frustration that his private text messages regarding former President Trump were given to the public. The texts, which he had shared with colleagues at Fox, were revealed as part of a defamation lawsuit.
Carlson said, “I think this is in the text, and those were all grabbed completely illegitimately, in my opinion um in this court case, which I guess I’m not allowed to talk about, but I’m enraged that my private texts were pulled.”
In one of the texts revealed, Carlson said, “I hate him [Trump] passionately.”
Another text read: “We are very very close to being able to ignore Trump most nights, I truly can’t wait,” Carlson wrote in a text to an unidentified Fox employee on Jan. 4, 2021.
However, on Tuesday, Carlson clarified his remarks by saying “I spent four years defending his policies and I’m going to defend them again tonight, and actually… I’m pretty straight forward: I love Trump. Like, as a person, I think Trump is funny and insightful.”
Carlson continued to explain, “I said this to Trump when he called me, you know, all wounded about those texts, that was a moment in time where I was absolutely infuriated.”
The defamation lawsuit was filed by Dominion Voting Systems against Fox News for spreading false claims about the integrity of the 2020 US Presidential Election. The lawsuit alleged that Fox News, along with its anchors and guests, made false statements and aired misleading reports that falsely suggested that Dominion had rigged the election in favor of President Joe Biden. The lawsuit seeks damages in excess of $1.6 billion.
The host of Fox News has had a somewhat complicated relationship with former President Donald Trump. While Carlson was initially critical of Trump during the 2016 Republican primaries, he eventually became a strong supporter of the President and his policies during his time in office.
However, there have also been instances where Carlson has been critical of Trump’s actions and statements, particularly regarding foreign policy and the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, there have been reports of tensions between Carlson and some of Trump’s allies, who have accused Carlson of not being supportive enough of the President.
