Karine Jean-Pierre blasts Tucker Carlson's 'false depiction' of January 6 after ... trends now
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tore into Fox News opinion host Tucker Carlson for his January 6 coverage after obtaining Capitol security footage – calling him 'not credible.'
Jean-Pierre went after the top-rated cable host by name, even referencing statements by Fox News lawyers in response to a Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit – a case that revealed Carlson saying he 'hates' Donald Trump, according to court documents.
'We agree with the chief of Capitol Police and the wide range of bipartisan lawmakers ... We have condemned this false depiction of the unprecedented violent attack on our Constitution and the rule of law, which cost police officers their lives,' she said.
'And that's what we saw on that day, on a very dark day and attack on our democracy,' she said of January 6.
White House Press Secretary Jean-Pierre quoted NPR and Washington Post accounts of Fox News host Tucker Carlson, calling him 'not credible' following his reports on January 6 based on Capitol security footage he obtained
Jean-Pierre relied on third parties to deliver remarks that undercut Carlson further, referencing media reports in the saga of Dominion's $1.6 billion suit against the network.
'And so we also, as it relates to the Tucker Carlson question, we agree with the Fox nation's own attorneys and executives, who have repeatedly stressed – and multiple courts of law – that target Tucker Carlson is not credible when it comes to this issue in particular', she said.
'And we have, you know, NPR back in back in September of 2020. They had the following. You literally can't believe the facts Tucker Carlson tells you, so say Fox's, lawyers, again, in Washington Post most recently, just last week, just a day ago. Fox executive [Sean] Hannity [and] Carlson shows are not credible sources of news.'
'So to have said what he said, when we when we saw Capitol police officers, or police officers, lose their lives, is just shameful,' she added.
Jean-Pierre was referencing Carlson's reporting since House Speaker Kevin McCarthy handed over thousands of hours of security footage. Carlson sought to portray the event as a peaceful event.
'They were peaceful, they were orderly and meek. These were not insurrectionists, they were sightseers,' Carlson said, blasting the House Jan. 6th Committee, which featured videos and images of rioters clashing violently with police.
Tucker Carlson is seen in July 2022 with Marjorie Taylor Greene and Trump at his New Jersey golf course. Carlson in January 2021 said he hated Trump 'passionately.' 'Said Jean-Pierre: 'And so we also, as it relates to the Tucker Carlson question, we agree with the Fox nation's own attorneys and executives, who have repeatedly stressed – and multiple courts of law – that target Tucker Carlson is not credible'
She was also calling attention to a 2020 NPR story with a headline Jean-Pierre quoted. It cited arguments put forward by Fox lawyers in a defamation suit, where the judge wrote that 'Fox persuasively argues, that given Mr. Carlson's reputation, any reasonable viewer "arrive[s] with an appropriate amount of skepticism" about the statement he makes.'
The blasts from the White House elevated the host and his claims hours after the latest revelations from legal filings in the Dominion suit.
Carlson confessed to his producer that he 'hated Trump passionately', according to files unsealed by a judge on Tuesday as part of the Dominion Voting Systems defamation suit.
Dominion is suing Carlson's network, Fox News, in a $1.6 billion case, claiming that the media company defamed the voting firm by questioning their technology and methods. Fox is fiercely contesting the allegations.
On Tuesday, Carlson's private messages were among a trove of emails and other communications unsealed by the judge.
Carlson, one of the biggest stars of the conservative channel, texted Alex Pfeiffer on January 4, 2021, the suit claims, to say he was looking forward to a post-Trump era.
'We are very, very close to being able to ignore Trump most nights. I truly can't wait,' he allegedly said, according to the lawsuit.
'I hate him passionately. I blew up at Peter Navarro today in frustration,' he allegedly wrote, referring to the former Trump administration official.
'I actually like Peter. But I can't handle much more of this.' Fox has denied Dominion's claims, and insists many of the messages shared in the lawsuit have been taken out of context.
A spokesperson said: 'Thanks to today’s filings, Dominion has been caught red handed again using more distortions and misinformation in their PR campaign to smear FOX News and trample on free speech and freedom of the press.
'We already know they will say and do anything to try to win this case, but to twist and even misattribute quotes to the highest levels
