Conservatives Condemn Tucker Interview With Alleged Sex Trafficker Andrew Tate…

Twitter/@TuckerCarlson

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson received mixed reactions on Tuesday after he released a two-and-a-half hour interview with Andrew Tate, the social media influencer who was charged with rape and human trafficking in Romania last month.

Carlson’s interview with Tate for the 9th episode of his show Tucker on Twitter was the first interview the former cable news star has done since he was dumped by Fox News in the wake of its $787.5 million settlement with Dominion for airing election conspiracy theories.

While the interview received promotion and praise from figures as varied as billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk and former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik, it also received backlash from conservative commentators and Carlson’s viewers alike.

“Tate is charged in Romania with rape, human trafficking, and forming an organised crime group to sexually exploit women. Are you an Andrew Tate right winger or a Sound of Freedom right winger. You can’t really be both,” tweeted conservative commentator Erick Erickson, in reference to Sound of Freedom — a movie about sex trafficking which was heavily promoted by conservatives on social media this month.

“Tucker devotes his first lengthy interview to a sex trafficking woman abusing fraud,” reacted Fox News contributor and Spectator editor Ben Domenech. “Not going to waste 2.5 hours of my life on these two, can someone tell me if Tucker asked Tate his opinion of Sound of Freedom.”

Washington Free Beacon reporter Chuck Ross made similar comments, tweeting, “Some conservatives are defending a movie about a guy who helps sex trafficking victims, other conservatives are hyping Andrew Tate.”

Others were turned off by the length of the interview, which had roughly the same running time as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

“Two and a half hours? I don’t think so,” tweeted Fox News columnist David Marcus, while former Republican Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh wrote, “Two and a half hours defending & singing the praises of an accused rapist and human trafficker. So brave.”

Other right-wing social media users protested Carlson’s decision to portray Tate as “a hero” and called Tate “a terrible influence for young men.”

“Why are you interviewing a horrible man that runs a webcam/ porn business in Romania? He sells women,” complained one woman, who said she was otherwise a fan of Carlson’s show, while another tweeted, “I’m losing respect for Tucker… This man traffic’s women, pays for sex, abused women, & preaches faux masculinity. Not a good look for a supposed Christian & conservative when Tate is the antithesis of that.”

Tate — a self-proclaimed “misogynist” who went viral for his controversial videos and social media posts about women — was charged with rape and human trafficking in Romania last month. According to prosecutors, Tate allegedly lured women to his compound in Romania, where he then forced them to produce pornographic content for his own financial gain.

Prior to Tuesday’s interview, Carlson had repeatedly defended Tate over the rape and human trafficking charges. In March, just a month before his Fox News show was taken off the air, Carlson claimed Tate had fallen victim to a “set-up” and called his detention “the definition of a human rights violation.”

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