Biden Chief of Staff Ron Klain Finds Tucker Carlson’s ‘Safe Harbor’ for Putin to be ‘Obviously Disgusting’
Biden Chief of Staff Ron Klain did not hesitate to assess former President Donald Trump’s request for political aid from Russian President Vladimir Putin or Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s alleged “PR” support for the Russian president during an appearance on MSNBC’s Deadline: White House.
Nicolle Wallace asked Klain Thursday afternoon about what she called “this sort of axis of flirtation and support for Vladimir Putin” by some on the right, particularly when Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has accused Putin of carrying out war crimes.
“What do you do with sort of the axis of Republican affinity for Putin that extends from Donald Trump asking him for more favors to work against the current American president, Tucker Carlson giving him safe harbor at least in a PR space?” she asked.
“I think it’s disgusting,” he replied without hesitation. “It’s obviously disgusting, Nicole.”
“We have Vladimir Putin, who every day we wake up and see him dropping bombs on hospitals, on schools, on children,” he continued, “and we have the former president, who thinks that’s a great person to try to engage in a political scheme with. It’s absolutely disgusting.”
He then pivoted to an appreciation for Republicans who have lent their support in working with Ukraine and confronting Putin. “We’re grateful for the fact that most Republicans on Capitol Hill are working closely with us” and “We’ve had strong bipartisan support for aid to provide economic aid, lethal aid, military assistance to the Ukrainians fighting president Putin.
“But if Donald Trump thinks that some kind of crackpot scheme conducted in conjunction with Vladimir Putin can serve his political interests, that will fail, as it has failed every time,” Klain summarized. “And it says a lot about who Donald Trump is, and how much he cares about our country’s security.”
Klain’s almost entirely focused on Trump’s call for Putin to reveal dirt on Biden in his reply but did not exclude the Fox News host from his immediate assessment.
The Biden Chief of Staff also notably refrained from clarifying Wallace’s framing that Carlson is giving Putin a “safe harbor” in PR space on his show. Segments of Tucker Carlson Tonight have been aired on Russian state-run television to indicate a narrative that seems, shall we say, different than a narrative seen elsewhere.
Klain is a federal government employee, and in fact, a very high-ranking one. There is a complicated history of administrations calling out media figures, and this could emerge as a new chapter in the book of White House vs. A Cable News Network.
Watch above via MSNBC.
