Fox News host Tucker Carlson cursed at a guest and called him a moron during an interview for his Fox News show recently after the guest, historian Rutger Bregman, said that Carlson was “a millionaire funded by billionaires,” according to video released Wednesday by NowThis News.
The interview, which Carlson pre-recorded with Bregman last week, according to the historian, never aired. On Wednesday, NowThis News published raw footage showing a feed of the interview taping.
A spokesperson for Fox News did not respond to TPM’s request for comment.
Watch Fox News host Tucker Carlson call one of his guests a 'tiny brain…moron' during an interview. NowThis has obtained the full segment with historian Rutger Bregman that Fox News is refusing to air. pic.twitter.com/kERYPUaGLY
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) February 20, 2019
Bregman initially made global headlines from the World Economic Forum in Davos for advocating for higher tax rates on the rich and beefed-up efforts against tax avoidance among the wealthy. Carlson opened the interview by praising the historian’s remarks at the conference, calling them “maybe the great moment in Davos history.”
Within a few minutes, though, Bregman pivoted to Fox News’ own pundits’ seemingly network-wide opposition to higher tax rates on the rich.
“Most of the people in Davos, but also here on this channel, have been bought by the billionaire class, you’re not meant to say these things,” he said, adding later: “What the Murdochs basically want you to do is to scapegoat immigrants instead of talking about tax avoidance, so I’m glad you’re now finally raising the issue, but that’s what’s been happening for the past couple years.
Carlson asked, sarcastically, “And I’m taking orders from the Murdochs?”
Bregman replied that it “doesn’t work that directly,” but pointed out that Carlson was a senior fellow at the Koch-funded Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.
“You’ve been taking their dirty money,” Bregman said, describing Carlson as “a millionaire funded by billionaires.”
“I’m glad you finally jumped the bandwagon of people like Bernie Sanders and AOC, but you’re not part of the solution, Mr. Carlson, you’re part of the problem,” he continued. “All the anchors on Fox [News], they’re all millionaires. How is this possible? Well, it’s very easy. You’re just not talking about certain things.”
Carlson protested, telling Bregman, “I am talking about these issues” to which Bregman replied that Carlson was “not very convincing, to be honest.”
At that point, Carlson had clearly had enough.
“I want to say to you, why don’t you go fuck yourself, you tiny-brained— 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.”
On Twitter Wednesday, Bregman acknowledged that he gave the footage to NowThis:
1/ Here’s the interview that @TuckerCarlson and Fox News didn’t want you to see. I chose to release it, because I think we should keep talking about the corrupting influence of money in politics. It also shows how angry elites can get if you do that. https://t.co/hs1474MJNM
— Rutger Bregman (@rcbregman) February 20, 2019
3/ Years ago, when he was asked a similar question, Chomsky replied: ‘I’m sure you believe everything you’re saying. But what I’m saying is that if you believe something different, you wouldn’t be sitting where you’re sitting.’
— Rutger Bregman (@rcbregman) February 20, 2019
