‘You’re Despicable!’: Fox News Panel Derails After Guest Calls Greta Thunberg ‘A Mentally Ill Swedish Child’

Fox News’ The Story tonight got heated during a discussion on climate change, calls for cutting down on meat consumption, and 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg, who spoke at the U.N. climate summit today.

Harris Faulkner — filling in for Martha MacCallum — brought up a piece from the Bloomberg editorial board titled “Give Up Meat (for a Day, at Least).”

The Daily Wire’s Michael Knowles brought up a study on the impact of meatless diets, saying, “They increase emissions, the increased energy use, water use, but none of that matters because the climate hysteria movement is not about science. If it were about science, it would be led by scientists rather than by politicians and a mentally ill Swedish child who is being exploited her parents and by the international left.”

Democrat Chris Hahn audibly remarked “how dare you” as Knowles continued and said this is a “political movement and a religious movement” on the left.

Hahn responded, “You’re a grown man and you’re attacking a child. Shame on you.”

“I’m not, I’m attacking the left for exploiting a mentally ill child,” Knowles said.

“Relax, skinny boy!” Hahn shot back. “I got this, okay? You’re attacking a child, you’re a grown man. Have some couth.”

“I’m attacking the left for exploiting a mentally ill child,” Knowles repeated.

“Maybe on your podcast you can get away and say whatever you want because nobody is listening. You’re on national television, be a grown-up when you’re talking about children,” Hann said. “She’s trying to save the planet because your president doesn’t believe in climate change. And kids need to take to the streets to worry about their future. You are despicable for talking about her like that and you should apologize our national television right now.”

Knowles again said the “international left and her parents” are “exploiting a girl with many mental illnesses,” saying, “She is mentally ill. She has autism, she has obsessive-compulsive disorder, she has selective mutism, she had depression.”

“You are despicable,” Hahn said. “You’re a grown-up! Be a grown-up.”

UPDATE — 9:33 pm ET: A Fox News spokesperson said in a statement provided to Mediaite, “The comment made by Michael Knowles who was a guest on The Story tonight was disgraceful – we apologize to Greta Thunberg and to our viewers.”

You can watch above, via Fox News.