Dutch historian Rutger Bregman has been a popular figure for many since he told a room full of millionaires and billionaires they should pay more taxes at the World Economic Forum at Davos last month. So for some reason, Tucker Carlson thought it would be a good idea to interview him.
The interview wasn’t aired on Fox, but some cell phone footage was posted today, and it’s worth watching the entire exchange. Toward the end, Bregman says
Carlson begins his meltdown at that point, concluding with “I wanna say to you, why don’t you go fuck yourself, you tiny brain—and I hope this gets picked up, because you’re a moron. I tried to give you a hearing, but you were too fucking annoying for me to—”
Bregman cuts in "You can’t handle the criticism, can you?”
And always staying classy, Carlson followed up with an email to Bregman: "I loved what you said at Davos, so I had high hopes for our interview. But you turned out to be far dumber, far more dogmatic and less impressive than I expected. You’re professional academic, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but it was still disappointing. Also for what it’s worth, you’re an asshole.”
He makes a point I always make relative to Make America Great Again. During the 1950’s and 1960’s, the top marginal tax rate was 70-90+%.
He totally owned Tucker Tucker Goatfucker.
Carlson’s reaction to the words “Alexandria Ocasio Cortez”. Bregman didn’t even get a chance to say anything about her or attribute anything to her. Her just said her name and Tucker’s head exploded.
Never heard this raging side of Carlson. I have heard him on a few occasions get cornered where he starts stammering, sputtering, and almost letting the mask off because someone is pacing two steps ahead of his BS - not on his show of course. He definitely broke character here. The historian wasn’t making the most well-founded, formidable points in the world but did a great job maintaining perfect calmness.
Exactly what was Carlson hoping for in seeking this interview? He may like to affect being the ultrarightwinger who is skeptical of billionaires, but that doesn’t mean someone else should be impressed.
And yes, as happened with Stewart years ago, he can’t take it to be told to his face he’s part of the problem.
That is the M.O. for FoxNews any time they have a “Democrat” on any of their shows. They are always the squishiest, most limp-wristed, in-over-their-head nobodys ever to claim political affiliation of any sort. I watch Fox for the lulz when they have a “balanced” point of view, one that is easily shown to be worthy of mockery. I don’t even believe these people are real Dems.
That was honestly one of the funniest things I’ve watched in weeks. I especially loved the disingenuous sputtering insistence that just because Faux Noise doesn’t air in Europe it’s impossible that any EU citizen could be familiar with their schtick and that calm “You’ve heard of the internet, right?” response was pitch perfect. Dude has godlike troll rolling skills.
Oh! Well in that case, go fuck yourself you fucking cocksucking goat-felching ass-licking shitgobbler. I apologize for the profanity, but believe me it is genuinely heartfelt and I mean it with total sincerity.
That was great; love the way the historian calmly names some genuine super-rich manipulators of the modern world (the Kochs, Murdochs) whose influence is plainly in the public domain, as being ‘part of the problem’. No wonder that Fox et al would prefer their readership to focus on fatuous conspiracy theories.