Carlson’s interview with a Holocaust revisionist shows how he got away with mainstreaming bigotry for so many years.
On Monday, Tucker Carlson hosted an amateur historian named Darryl Cooper on his show to discuss the history of World War II. The result was an extended exercise in Nazi sympathizing with little pushback from Carlson, who called Cooper (who tweets under the handle @martyrmade) “the most important popular historian working in the United States today.”
The interview poses a major test to the Republican Party. He delivered a primetime speech at the 2024 RNC and reportedly played a major role in the JD Vance vice presidential pick. Now that he’s crossing the reddest of red lines — actively apologizing for Adolf Hitler — can the party cut ties?
The answer has been a resounding no. The Trump camp — which sets the tone for the entire party — has so far done nothing to distance itself from the increasingly toxic Carlson.
Nobody should be surprised the current GOP is failing this particular test. This is the party that renominated Trump after all that he’s done; if there are red lines left for them, it’s not obvious what they are.