The White House on Wednesday blasted Tucker Carlson, after he claimed in an interview with Israel’s Channel 13 News that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dragged the US into a war with Iran.
“Long before he was elected, President Trump has been consistent in his belief that Iran can never be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon. Israel has always been a great ally to the United States, especially through Operations Midnight Hammer and Epic Fury that obliterated Iran’s nuclear facilities and destroyed their defense industrial base," the White House said in a statement to Channel 13 News.
“President Trump took bold, decisive action to protect the American people - something presidents have talked about for 47 years, but only this President has had the courage to address," the statement added.
In the interview, which aired on Tuesday, Carlson fiercely attacked Netanyahu, stating that he is "leading Israel toward destruction" and describing him as "a very bad leader and a very unwise leader", though he also said that he believes Netanyahu “is acting in what he thinks is his nation's best interest. So I give him credit for that and always have."
He claimed that “because of this war…America's relationship with Israel, while it may be based on good intentions, is hurting the United States very badly" and called for an end to American aid: “I don't think the United States owes Israel anything. I don't think the United States should give Israel anything. I think we should stop all aid to Israel, all special deals for Israel."
On the war against Iran, Carlson criticized the very involvement of the US in the conflict, and claimed that Trump "turned out to be far weaker than I understood" and had been pushed by Netanyahu “into a war that hurts the United States."
Carlson was once an ally of Trump but has changed his tune and become one of his fiercest critics, as well as a critic of Israel.
In February, Carlson made headlines when he falsely claimed that he had been detained at Ben Gurion Airport upon his arrival in Israel.
Video footage posted to social media painted an entirely different picture of Carlson’s experience at Ben Gurion Airport. In the footage, Carlson is seen signing a document, smiling, embracing a security guard, taking a picture with him, and then leaving.
Carlson was later forced to retract false claims he made that President Isaac Herzog visited Jeffrey Epstein’s island.