Here Are the Prominent Conservatives Defending Tucker Carlson’s Bubba the Love Sponge Comments
Media Twitter exploded on Sunday evening when liberal media watchdog group Media Matters for America dropped audio of Fox News host Tucker Carlson making numerous misogynistic and other vile comments during appearances on shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge’s radio show from 2006 to 2011. Besides seemingly defending statutory rape and dismissing crimes committed by child rapist and cult leader Warren Jeffs, Carlson also called television host Alexis Stewart “cunty” and pop star Britney Spears one of “the biggest white whores in America.”
After Media Matters published the audio, Fox News released a statement from Carlson that revealed he was not contrite about his past remarks. Instead, he challenged folks from the activist group to come on his show and debate him while saying that Media Matters had caught him saying something naughty.
Prominent conservatives, meanwhile, rallied around Carlson, taking aim at Media Matters for what they described as left-wing smears meant to silence an extremely famous and effective voice on the right, all while brushing off the extreme nature of the comments in general.
Religious right blogger Matt Walsh claimed nobody cared about “jokes Carlson made on the radio 15 years ago.”
Except you don’t actually care about jokes Carlson made on the radio 15 years ago. You know you don’t care and I know you don’t care. You don’t have to pretend with me, Pat. This is a safe place. https://t.co/53ERwigRhM
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) March 11, 2019
Conservative pundit and RedState founder Erick Erickson applauded Carlson’s non-apology, calling for “more of this please.”
More of this please. https://t.co/kSDBqJ2j5G
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) March 11, 2019
Large adult presidential son Donald Trump Jr. revealed that he actually doesn’t know what satire is.
For comments made on the “Bubba The Love Sponge” show. Obviously a serious policy show where no satire would be made.
The left is not going after @TuckerCarlson for any reason other then he’s effective at destroying their agenda. That’s what they do. https://t.co/ExtAY86q5i
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) March 11, 2019
Talk radio host Jesse Kelly took shots at Media Matters researchers, calling them losers for combing through Carlson’s old radio transcripts.
You may think your life didn’t turn out the way you wanted it, but at least you’re not working for Media Matters and combing through Tucker Carlson’s radio interviews from half a decade ago. Imagine being that big of a loser.
— Jesse Kelly (@JesseKellyDC) March 11, 2019
FYI for those of you who don’t know. Media Matters is a Leftist enforcement arm whose entire purpose is to get pundits on the Right fired. They track down sponsors and have their hordes flood their phone lines. Things like that. Just really gross people.
— Jesse Kelly (@JesseKellyDC) March 11, 2019
Ben “The Cool Kids’ Philosopher” Shapiro also weighed in.
I’m sure all the people tweeting #BoycottTuckerCarlson are nightly watchers, not Carlson-hating activists.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) March 11, 2019
Media Matters is truly just concerned about everyone’s old shock jock radio commentary, and they magically stumbled upon Carlson. This wasn’t a bad faith typical Media Matters hit job or anything.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) March 11, 2019
None of this means that Carlson's old comments are good. They aren't! Shock jock radio is gross and always has been. But spare me the "OH MY GOD I'M SO OUTRAGED BY STUFF TUCKER SAID PUBLICLY OVER A DECADE AGO WHEN HE WORKED FOR MSNBC AND I'M JUST NOTICING IT NOW!" nonsense.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) March 11, 2019
If you want to go after Tucker, ask him about these comments now and see how he responds. That way you're getting his reaction now, which is when we are currently alive!
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) March 11, 2019
The Dragon of Budapest cheered on Carlson for not backing down to the “Leftists’ attack-dogs,” saying this “is how you do it.”
This is how you do it. @TuckerCarlson shows how you must hold the Leftists’ attack-dogs in utter contempt. https://t.co/W1q0DEcvAL
— Sebastian Gorka DrG (@SebGorka) March 11, 2019
The Daily Wire’s Ryan Saavedra claimed Media Matters were hypocrites for only going after figures on the right and not speaking out against Joy Reid’s old homophobic blog posts.
Media Matters exists for the sole purpose of smearing and ruining people on the political Right.
They said *nothing* when all of Joy Reid's old racist, homophobic, anti-Semitic writings came out starting in late 2017, which received weeks of coverage on a few separate occasions https://t.co/QweIXUJAND
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) March 11, 2019
Conservative writer Carmine Sabia insisted that Carlson’s comments were taken “out of context” and was just about trying to “destroy his career and end his show.”
Someone went through 5 years of radio appearances to get the worst things Tucker Carlson said out of context for one reason. To destroy his career and end his show. It is not about outrage. It is about hunting to find something to take out an enemy. They do it all the time.
— Carmine Sabia (@CarmineSabia) March 11, 2019
Radio show host Buck Sexton excused Carlson’s remarks, stating that people who write and say millions of words “are going to sometimes say things they regret, didn’t mean, or messed up.”
People who write millions of words, speak (often off script) for thousands of hours- are going to sometimes say things they regret, didn’t mean, or messed up
It is a choice to accept an America where your political enemies can ruin you for that
I choose not to accept that.
— Buck Sexton (@BuckSexton) March 11, 2019
Arthur Schwartz warned liberals that if they come after Tucker, they will find out “what we’ve been holding in our back pockets,” suggesting that conservatives have oppo research on other mainstream journalists on par with Reid’s blog posts.
Note to the folks on the left: if y’all think that the Kaitlan Collins, Josh Dawsey and Joy Reid tweets and blog posts were all we had on you, just try and come at #Tucker. You’ll find out what we’ve been holding in our back pockets. Chose your words & demands carefully.
— Arthur Schwartz (@ArthurSchwartz) March 11, 2019
Townhall columnist Kurt Schlichter merely said: “Buzz off you geeks.”
I can't believe somebody said something offensive to a bunch of leftist prudes on a show hosted by "Bubba the Love Sponge."
Buzz off you geeks. How about @TuckerCarlson and everybody else say whatever they want and you sit there and be pissed off about it? https://t.co/lnvZPM9gKY
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) March 11, 2019
“Prison Planet” Paul Joseph Watson brushed off Carlson’s remarks as “jokes from the mid-2000s while claiming the left demonizes and demeans children.
The same people who doxx, harass, demonise and demean children on a routine basis are telling us to be outraged about jokes from the mid-2000s as an excuse to get Tucker Carlson off the air. I'll pass. https://t.co/6ZeByJAZm1
— Paul Joseph Watson (@PrisonPlanet) March 11, 2019
Media Matters, meanwhile, has promised that they will be publishing more audio from Carlson’s radio appearances in the coming days. MMfA president Angelo Carusone said that the “other material is similarly vile” and the next one that is dropped “will help give some additional insight into Tucker’s worldview vis-a-vis race and ethnicity.”
