Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s sudden departure from the cable network is being greeted as good news by Republicans who support U.S. intervention in the war in Ukraine.
Carlson was one of the most prominent critics of U.S. involvement to defend Kyiv against Moscow’s invasion.
“It’s a bad day for Vladimir Putin,” a Senate Republican aide said. “This takes one of the biggest critics of Ukraine war in Republican and conservative circles off the table.”
The aide noted that some GOP senators were also uncomfortable with what they viewed as Carlson’s over-the-top rhetoric opposing vaccine mandates, which divided conservatives during the pandemic.
When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) declared that the war in Ukraine was a “territorial dispute” and not a vital national interest — a statement that many Republicans later criticized — he did so in response to a query from Carlson.
DeSantis quickly walked back his comment after getting strong pushback on Capitol Hill from prominent lawmakers including Senate Republican Whip John Thune (S.D.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
One Republican senator, who requested anonymity to comment on a media figure who had a loyal following among many right-leaning voters, said Carlson’s departure from prime time would be a positive development for maintaining public support for the war.
“He wasn’t troubled by whether something was true or not. He was mean, irresponsible and dangerous,” the lawmaker said.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who has called the Ukraine crisis “one of the greatest demonstrations of good versus evil we’ve seen in our lifetimes,” said Carlson had a big influence on many Republicans.
“There have been some that have argued that he was setting foreign policy for the Republican Party, which I find to be bizarre. Certainly not for me,” he said. “To the primary [Republican] voter, the active participant, the grassroot voter, he’s a person they listen to and has a big influence.”
Asked how he evaluated Carlson’s influence on the GOP electorate, Romney said “it depends on the issue but I think with regards to Russia and Ukraine he was misguided.”
