Tucker Carlson says he had a 'moral obligation' to personally speak to Trump about coronavirus
Worried about the coronavirus and feeling like not enough people were taking it seriously, Fox News host Tucker Carlson set up a meeting with President Trump earlier this month at his Mar-a-Lago resort in order to tell him to his face that the situation was dire.
Carlson discussed the tête-à-tête with Vanity Fair's Joe Hagan. He spoke with Trump for two hours, and while he would not spill on what Trump said to him, Carlson did tell Hagan he got across the fact that the COVID-19 coronavirus is an existential threat to both the United States and Trump's re-election.
The first COVID-19 case in the United States was reported in January. Trump said it was "totally under control" and "going to be just fine," but Carlson said he saw how spooked the Chinese government was by the outbreak in its country, and he figured "we should pay attention to it." After researching and reporting on the virus, Carlson felt he had "a moral obligation to be useful in whatever small way I could," and determined that meant setting up a meeting to stress to Trump that the imminent coronavirus pandemic could be disastrous.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Carlson and Trump spoke on March 7, with Carlson telling Hagan he told Trump "exactly what I've said on TV, which is that this could be really bad. My view is that we may have missed the point where we can control it." Carlson believes there are "a lot of people around" Trump, particularly "Republican members on Capitol Hill," who were "determined to pretend this wasn't happening." Now, he thinks the White House is taking the matter "seriously" and "knows that we're not prepared."
The coronavirus pandemic has "scared the hell out of everyone, left and right," Carlson said, and he doesn't have "the faintest idea" if Trump will make it out of the crisis unscathed. "I spent months telling our viewers that Joe Biden would never get a nomination," Carlson said. "So I mean, I have literally no idea." Read more at Vanity Fair.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
The Icelandic women’s strike 50 years onIn The Spotlight The nation is ‘still no paradise’ for women, say campaigners
-
Mall World: why are people dreaming about a shopping centre?Under The Radar Thousands of strangers are dreaming about the same thing and no one sure why
-
Why scientists are attempting nuclear fusionThe Explainer Harnessing the reaction that powers the stars could offer a potentially unlimited source of carbon-free energy, and the race is hotting up
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
