Tucker Carlson began releasing preview clips from his interview with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday, including one in which he asked Pezeshkian about Iranians chanting “Death to America.”
“Many Americans are afraid of Iran. You say you’re not afraid, but Americans are afraid of Iran. And they believe that Iran would like to strike the United States with a nuclear weapon. They see video of Iranians saying death to America, describing our country as the great Satan. What is your opinion of that? Should we be afraid?” Carlson asked.
“I believe that this is a very wrong impression that anybody might have of Iran or the Iranians. I would like to remind you that Iran has never invaded another country in the last 200 years. When they say death to the United States it doesn’t mean death to—they don’t mean death for the people of the United States or even to the officials of the United States,” Pezeshkian replied through a translator, adding:
They mean death to crimes, death to killing and carnage, death to supporting, killing others, to insecurity and instability. Have you ever heard that an Iranian killing [sic] an American? Have you heard that? Or a terrorist that was Iranian and he carried out a terrorist attack against the Americans? And no, it was your president who confessed that the Americas created the ISIS [sic] in our region and they were responsible for this wrong image that is portrayed
of religion of the Muslims in the world.And once again, I would like to tell you and remind you that this is not death to the American people or to the officials. Death to crimes and atrocities, to bullying, to the use of force. Anybody who would like to become an accomplice in the crimes perpetrated by others.
Carlson released other clips, including one in which he asked if Iran was trying to assassinate President Donald Trump, which Pezeshkian claimed was a lie perpetuated by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Carlson did not push back on Pezeshkian’s claim and quickly moved on to ask another question.
Carlson has now landed high-profile interviews with the leaders of Russia, Iran, and Qatar. Carlson raised eyebrows with his softball treatment of both Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Russian President Vladimir Putin – so much so that Putin famously insulted Carlson after their February 2024 interview, saying he was surprised Carlson didn’t ask any “tough questions.”
“To be honest, I thought that he would behave aggressively and ask so-called sharp questions. I was not just prepared for this, I wanted it, because it would give me the opportunity to respond in the same way,” Putin told a Russian journalist following the interview.
Carlson’s softball interviews with the leaders
Watch the clip above.