Intentional or not, Tucker Carlson just did the world a strange favor: He showed how deluded and dangerous Putin really is.
Typically, I do not agree with Tucker Carlson’s politics. This is immaterial – different people have different ideas. That’s the beauty of freedom of speech and freedom of expression, and it is what makes the West the strongest power on the planet.
Clearly, for a while, Carlson has been a bit more deferential to Russia in its war against Ukraine in order to score political points against a democratic liberal mainstream he disagrees with. He has been wrong in his assessment of Russia and Ukraine many times, in my view, but so have others. Let us not forget the unbelievably hagiographical 4-hour interview conducted with Putin by left-wing filmmaker Oliver Stone done in 2017, already after Putin unleashed the war against Ukraine in 2014, amongst other wars (Chechnya, Georgia, Syria). Journalists, commentators and philosophers have been in love with the idea of finding out how tyrants are thinking ever since the days of Plato, Machiavelli and Voltaire.
So, what are we learning from Putin? Some highlights:
- According to Putin, Poland began World War II by not letting Germans take back territory they lost after World War I, and by not letting the Soviets move forces to Czechoslovakia. Bad Poland.
- Poland and Lithuania are also blamed for inventing Ukraine.
- Somehow, Russian history predates Ukrainian (Kievan Rus!) history.
- Sharing a language means you should be in the same country (What did the American commentator think about that? Should the United States be ruled from London again?).
- Somehow, Ukraine “endangered” Crimea, and Russia had to “save” it.
- Ukraine attacked Donbas apparently for no reason – there was no mention of Russia occupying it by establishing the fake “peoples’ republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk.
- Putin keeps spreading lies about NATO expansion going against promises — while some politicians made promises, these were never codified, with the approval of the USSR — then the USSR collapsed, and after that, Russian President Yeltsin even approved NATO expansion. Never did the West agree not to expand NATO – I know, because I lived at that time and followed all the news. Countries can join NATO if they like. They have to apply and follow democratic norms. Russia refused to apply and follow the process – THIS is why it was not admitted. Putin lied here as well.
- Putin leaves out how his people poisoned Yushchenko.
- Putin leaves out how Yanukovich’s election was probably manipulated, according to the OSCE.
- Putin denies that Ukrainians may have and any agency — and that the Maidan revolution was already the third attempt at independence.
- Putin lies about who committed violence in Maidan – leaving out Yanukovich’s Berkut shock troopers who attacked peaceful protesters.
- Putin denies that Yanukovich was legitimately deposed, and that he enriched himself at the expense of Ukrainians – private zoo included.
- Putin denies the identity of Ukrainians – nothing new there.
- Putin lies that Zelenskyi somehow knew that the old Ukrainian freedom fighter honored in the Canadian parliament was an SS man – everyone found out after the fact, and the Canadian House Speaker resigned. Zelenskyi was not informed of about the identity of the man.
- Putin leaves out the history of Russian genocide against Ukrainians, which is why some of them turned to Stepan Bandera – quite an important detail. I don’t agree with Bandera’s support for the Nazis, but Ukraine was caught between two genocidal forces. Different times. Ukraine clearly needs to find a better way to position itself towards Bandera, but this is no cause for war. On the other hand, Putin has rehabilitated Stalin, who was allied with Hitler till Nazi Germany attacked the USSR. Go figure. Hypocrisy. Shocking.
- Putin lies about the negotiations in Istanbul – it is not Boris Johnson who convinced Ukraine not to negotiate any further, but the news of the massacres in Bucha, Irpin and other cities. These news revealed Putin’s war as the genocide it is, and showed that negotiations with this murderer are useless.
- Putin attributes nuclear threats to the West, while his old buddy Medvedev makes them regularly – every Thursday! It seems Medvedev has it penciled in to his calendar: “Thursday: Threaten feeble West with nukes to deter them from helping Ukraine.” It would be comical if it weren’t so serious.
- Putin blames Ukraine for disrespecting the Minsk agreements (which Russia broke by not removing heavy weapons – also, it was the invader in the first place!) while ignoring that Putin broke the Budapest Memorandum.
All of this was not a surprise. We have heard all this before.
But then, Carlson asked some pointed questions, and we were able to learn new things:
- The war will not be over until Putin conquers more territory.
- Putin admits that he wants to continue to cleanse Ukraine of “Nazis” and to remove their Ukrainian identity. He basically admits to his genocidal intentions.
- Putin admitted to the existence of the Molotov-Rippentrop (Hitler-Stalin) pact, the Nazi-Soviet alliance that lasted from 1939-41.
- Putin does not want to talk about who blew up the North Stream pipelines. He ignores that he had the most to gain – he had stopped deliveries and would have had to pay a penalty. If he could blame the West, he would have. He can’t.
- Putin reeks of desperation. Sanctions must be REALLY hurting Putin. He keeps appealing to the West to return to business as usual. He does this many, many, many times. Putin is really afraid of the United States and wants to minimize Europe as a “vassal” of the US. But this only heightens his fear.
- Putin is also somewhat afraid of China.
- Putin doesn’t know much about history. He may have been able to bamboozle Carlson a bit, but you could hear that from the American perspective, nobody cares what happened more than 100 years ago, if that. Insistence on talking about Medieval Russian and Ukrainian history only led to frequent displays of consternation on Carlson’s very vocal face.
- Putin doesn’t know how to end the war, and he insists on some solution where people can keep face. He ostentatiously talks about that applying to Ukraine, but we know he means himself. Again, fear.
- Putin praises George W. Bush and fails to praise Trump. He seems to not have gotten the message that one of Carlson’s (and Trump’s) constant critiques is that Bush W.’s Republicans — together with the Democrats — were Neocons. Carlson has been Russia-curious not because he likes Russia, but as an overcompensation in his critique of American colonialism and interventionism that had brought us the disasters of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. Putin’s lack of praise for Trump is really curious — but again, it proves the next point. American politics can be confusing.
- Putin is clearly not very informed about the West. He does not understand democracy, freedom of speech and expression, federalism, state rights, etc. Any Republican (and Democrat) watching this should be horrified at Putin’s vision of how political rule works. His understanding is limited. KGB through and through. He is a skilled liar and manipulator though.
- Putin has no understanding of religion. He cannot explain a single conservative perspective.
Putin comes across as petty (gloatingly calling out Carlson for not making it into the CIA), viciously angry and hurt by the West, and as a pedantic old coot in his deluded history lesson.
Putin is also clearly not as intelligent as he thinks he is. As much as Tucker Carlson may have his own agenda, I refuse to believe that he would support Putin’s Anti-American agenda. I may disagree with Carlson’s vision for America, but I seriously doubt that Putin’s authoritarian ideas align with Carlson’s radical libertarian outlook. Does Putin really believe Carlson would side with Russia and China over the US? Really?
Should Carlson have been more critical and confrontational? Given that Putin is known for killing his critics, no sane person could really demand this. Not in-person. You may not like Tucker Carlson, but would you really wish him harm? He entered the lion’s den and had to behave accordingly. In many ways, this was an act of bravery, even if somewhat self-serving. His facial expressions, however, spoke volumes.
Certainly, Carlson got in some of his own propaganda points. He has a point of view, I don’t agree with it in many ways, but so be it. Go do your own interview if you can and dare.
To his credit, Carson in the end asked for the release of an American journalist. Putin seemed annoyed, and he seemed to sense that maybe this American commentator was not a friend after all – and was interested in his own agenda rather than just blindly promoting Putin’s point of view. (I am being generous here because I want to believe in the best in people.)
The takeaway?
For whatever it’s worth, whether intentional or not, Tucker Carlson just did the world a strange favor: He showed how deluded and dangerous Putin really is. He also knows he can only win if we let him. Let’s not.
Ceterum censeo Ucrainam esse defendam. Слава Україні!
Erratic Attempts 