A day after Tucker Carlson publicly scolded him for the unforgivable sin of calling the Jan. 6 rebel a “violent terrorist assault,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) hightailed it to the Fox Information star’s present on Thursday evening to grovel for forgiveness.
But, whereas Cruz repeatedly claimed he’d made a “mistake” because of “sloppy and albeit dumb” phrasing, Carlson wouldn’t let the Texas senator off the hook—prompting the one-time presidential contender to plead more durable for Carlson’s approval.
Cruz, considered one of eight senators who objected to the certification of President Joe Biden’s electoral victory, drew Carlson’s wrath on Wednesday when he solemnly described the lethal Capitol riot as “a violent terrorist assault” throughout a Senate listening to.
Carlson, who has downplayed the violence of Jan. 6 and urged the rebel was a “false flag” orchestrated by federal brokers, puzzled “what the hell’s happening,” whereas accusing Cruz of “repeating the speaking factors that Merrick Garland has written.”
In a second that evoked Cruz siding with Donald Trump in 2016 after Trump personally disparaged his spouse and father, the Republican lawmaker appeared on Tucker Carlson Tonight to kiss the ring and beg the Fox Information viewers to forgive him.
“There are quite a lot of dumb folks in Congress. You aren't considered one of them. Smarter than I'm. And also you by no means use phrases carelessly,” Carlson kicked off the interview. “And but you name this a terror assault when by no definition was it a terror assault. That was a lie. You advised that lie on function and I’m questioning why you probably did.”
After saying he contacted Carlson the evening earlier than to ask to come back on and inform his aspect, Cruz then declare the best way he phrased his phrases “was sloppy and albeit dumb.” Carlson, nonetheless, was having none of it.
“I don’t purchase that,” the Fox star interjected. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! I’ve identified you a very long time since earlier than you went to the Senate. You had been a Supreme Court docket contender. You're taking phrases as significantly as any man who’s served within the Senate. And each phrase—you repeated that phrase, I don't consider that you simply used that by chance. I simply don’t!”
“Tucker, on account of my sloppy phrasing it’s brought on lots of people to misconceive what I meant. Let me inform you what I meant to say,” Cruz implored. “What I used to be referring to are the restricted quantity of people that engaged in violent assaults in opposition to cops. I believe you and I each agree that when you assault a police officer, you must go to jail. That's who I used to be speaking about.”
Once more saying his “phrasing was sloppy,” Cruz insisted he “wasn’t saying the 1000's of peaceable protesters supporting Donald Trump are by some means terrorists.” Carlson, although, remained unconvinced.
“Maintain on, what you simply mentioned doesn’t even make sense,” the primetime host replied. “If somebody assaults a cop, he ought to go to jail, I couldn’t agree extra. We’ve mentioned that for years. However that individual remains to be not a terrorist. How many individuals of been charged with terrorism on January 6? Like, why did you employ that phrase? You’re enjoying into the opposite aspect’s characterization!”
Cruz maintained that for over a decade, he had used the phrase “terrorist” to explain individuals who had violently assaulted cops. On the similar time, he tried to enchantment to Carlson’s ego.
“That being mentioned, Tucker, I agree with you, it was a mistake to say that yesterday and the reason being what you simply mentioned,” the previous presidential candidate mentioned. “We've got now had a 12 months of Democrats and the media twisting phrases and attempting to say that every one of us are terrorists. Making an attempt to say you're a terrorist, I'm a terrorist.”
Cruz went on to say that he understood “why folks had been indignant” along with his feedback, claiming that it was inside the context of the “corrupt company media” taking goal at “anybody who objected to election fraud” over the previous 12 months.
“Wait, wait, wait, can I simply ask, I suppose I simply don’t consider you! And I imply that with respect, as a result of I've such respect in your acuity and your precision,” mentioned Carlson, alongside an on-air graphic blaring “Cruz'ing For A Bruising.”
“I’ve seen it on show, I’ve lined you as a reporter, I understand how you communicate. And you've got sat there for a 12 months and watched folks use language to distort the occasions of that day deliberately. Riot, coup, terrorism!”
Ultimately, after agreeing with Carlson that the Jan. 6 rebel wasn’t an rebel, Cruz once more apologized for calling Jan. 6 rioters “terrorists” whereas peppering in right-wing buzzwords.
“However the cause I’ve used that phrase is I’ve used that phrase for individuals who violently assault cops. I used that phrase in 2020 for the antifa and BLM terrorists who assaulted cops and firebombed police automobiles, however I agree it was a mistake to make use of the phrase yesterday,” the conservative senator proclaimed.
After placing Cruz by the wringer for practically eight minutes, Carlson ended the interview by thanking the Texas lawmaker for approaching his present.