Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson criticized two Republican senators over their social media posts in which they appeared to call for the United States to attack Iran in retaliation for a drone strike that killed three U.S. soldiers in Jordan became.
US President Joe Biden announced on Sunday that a drone strike killed three US military personnel and injured 34 others stationed in northeastern Jordan near the Syrian border. The president blamed Iran-backed militant groups for the deadly explosion. Officials said the attack was launched from Syria on Saturday evening.
In response to news of the attack, Senator Lindsey Graham and Senator John Cornyn both posted on X, formerly Twitter, calling on the US to take action.
Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, wrote on X: “Hit Iran now. Hit her hard.”
While Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, was publishing a CNN article about the news of the drone strike, he posted on X: “Tehran in his sights.”
Carlson seemed to disagree with the idea of retaliation against Iran on X, where he shared a picture of Graham and Cornyn's posts and called the senators “fucking lunatics.”
Former Fox News television personality Tucker Carlson speaks at the Family Leadership Summit on July 14, 2023 in Des Moines, Iowa. In a post dated January 28, 2024 at In a post dated January 28, 2024 at More Scott Olson/Getty
Newsweek emailed representatives for Carlson and Graham on Sunday evening seeking comment.
A spokesman for Cornyn responded to Newsweek's request for comment by sending a “follow-up tweet from the senator.”
In the post, Cornyn responded to an X user who asked if he was suggesting that the US should “bomb Iran.” The Texas Republican replied: “No. Terrorist supporters of the IRGC and the Quds Force.”
Carlson, the Tucker up
The attack by US troops in Jordan, a US ally in the Middle East, comes as the war between Israel and Hamas has escalated tensions in the months following Hamas' surprise attack on Israel in October 2023 the entire region.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas led the deadliest Palestinian militant attack on Israel in history, leading the Middle Eastern country to launch its heaviest airstrikes and ground offensives ever against Gaza, home to more than 2 million Palestinians. Israeli officials said the Hamas attack killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took about 250 hostages, according to the Associated Press. As of Sunday, more than 26,000 Palestinians had been killed, Gaza health ministry officials said.
Carlson has previously spoken out against a possible US war with Iran.
Just weeks after Hamas' surprise attack on Israel, Carlson criticized Republicans, saying they were not doing enough to fight the Biden administration, which he accused of “pushing” the country into war with Iran to pull.
“We appear to be heading toward war with Iran, certainly the Biden administration is pushing us in that direction,” Carlson said. “What's new, interesting and threatening is that very few Republicans, the opposition party, are pushing back. Instead, these party leaders support this.”
The conflict in the Middle East has become increasingly precarious for the United States and its armed forces stationed in the region. Biden's administration has continued to support Israel throughout the war. In response, Iranian-backed groups have targeted U.S. troops. Yemen's Iran-allied Houthi fighters have fired drones and missiles at ships in the Red Sea since mid-November. The US responded with a series of attacks on Houthi targets.
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Newsweek strives to challenge conventional wisdom and find connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek strives to challenge conventional wisdom and find connections in the search for common ground.