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Politics
Liam O'Dell
May 15, 2022
Tucker Carlson claims there are "no organised white surpremacist forces" in America
Fox News
Controversial Fox News host Tucker Carlson has once again sparked a wave of public condemnation online – this time over previous comments on domestic terrorism which have resurfaced following a shooting in Buffalo, New York on Saturday.
Thirteen people – 11 of whom were Black – were shot after a gunman entered a supermarket with a rifle and opened fire, killing 10 individuals in what’s reported to be the deadliest mass shooting in America so far this year.
US president Joe Biden said in a statement: “Any act of domestic terrorism, including an act perpetrated in the name of a repugnant white nationalist ideology, is antithetical to everything we stand for in America.”
According to investigators, suspect Payton Gendron – who was arraigned and charged with murder in the first degree on Saturday, to which he has pleaded not guilty - livestreamed the massacre online and uploaded a manifesto on white supremacy.
However, it is comments from Mr Biden warning of domestic terrorism which Carlson has targeted in the past, with a video from an episode of Tucker Carlson Tonight in January being reshared to social media on Saturday night.
“Where exactly is all this ‘criminal white supremacy’, this right-wing domestic terrorism that poses ‘the most lethal terrorist threat in the homeland’?
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“Where is it? Well, ‘cause it doesn’t exist,” Carlson said, in a clip posted by Twitter user Acyn.
Following the tragic and horrific events in Buffalo this weekend, a lot of people on the social media platform beg to differ:
literally everyone warned fox news and tucker carlson that this would happen and they fucking laughed and went harder— Andrew Lawrence (@Andrew Lawrence) 1652567931
The Buffalo killer\u2019s manifesto reads like a job application for a junior producer on Tucker Carlson.\n\nAnd no, I\u2019m not being flippant.— Rick Wilson (@Rick Wilson) 1652565689
This takes \u201cthis take did not age well\u201d to an entirely new levelhttps://twitter.com/acyn/status/1525584305593802752\u00a0\u2026— Matt Wilstein (@Matt Wilstein) 1652595198
Hey @TuckerCarlson, white supremacist terrorism DOES exist. And it manifested itself once again this afternoon at a grocery store in Buffalo. And because it exists, ten innocent souls are gone.https://twitter.com/acyn/status/1525584305593802752\u00a0\u2026— Joe Walsh (@Joe Walsh) 1652569636
Of all the lies from Tucker Carlson, this January claim that criminal white supremacy and right-wing domestic terrorism \u201cdoesn\u2019t exist\u201d was always one of the most brazen.https://twitter.com/acyn/status/1525584305593802752\u00a0\u2026— Daniel Dale (@Daniel Dale) 1652618770
pic.twitter.com/6C7655olYb— Kam \ud83d\udc3f\ufe0f vs The World \ud83c\udf0e\ud83c\udf0d (@Kam \ud83d\udc3f\ufe0f vs The World \ud83c\udf0e\ud83c\udf0d) 1652563439
2018 - Tree of Life Synagogue\n2019 - El Paso TX Walmart\n2022 - Buffalo NY supermarket \n\nHow many examples does Tucker need?— PWtham11 (@PWtham11) 1652563267
Others have pointed out that the manifesto which was reportedly authored by the suspect contains comments about the so-called ‘White Replacement Theory' - a racist conspiracy theory which claims the US government is “trying to replace the current electorate … with new people, more obedient voters from the third world”:
A self-described white supremecist traveled to a black neighborhood and murdered 10 people today, leaving behind a manifesto on the Great Replacement theory \u2014 a racist conspiracy theory endorsed repeatedly by Tucker Carlson, the nation\u2019s most-watched political pundit— Judd Legum (@Judd Legum) 1652568172
There will probably be a lot of talk in the coming days about whether Tucker Carlson and other right wing pundits and politician who promote white replacement theory intended to foment massacres, and it\u2019s very important to remember that what they intended doesn\u2019t matter at all.https://twitter.com/briantylercohen/status/1525581101623758848\u00a0\u2026— A.R. Moxon (@A.R. Moxon) 1652563269
There needs to be some accountability for Tucker Carlson pushing Great Replacement theory.\n\nHe is stoking deadly consequences.— BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@BrooklynDad_Defiant!) 1652588032
NEW: A mass shooter in Buffalo, NY who killed at least 10 people had posted a manifesto online espousing the White Replacement Theory, per @BNONews.\n\nWhite Replacement Theory has been long promoted and championed by Tucker Carlson on Fox News.pic.twitter.com/LaO82WpzfH— Brian Tyler Cohen (@Brian Tyler Cohen) 1652561853
With Tucker Carlson Tonight airing on weekdays, the Fox News host is yet to comment on Saturday’s Buffalo shooting on his TV show, and has not responded to the current outcry on Twitter.
Indy100 has reached out to Fox News for comment.
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