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Tucker Carlson calls coach a ‘fascist moron’ over fining Jack Del Rio for Jan. 6 comments

June 11, 2022 | | Print Article

(Video: Fox News)

Fox News host Tucker Carlson slammed an NFL coach as a “fascist moron” for fining a defensive coordinator who had dared to compare the one-day Jan. 6th riot to the deadly, months-long Black Lives Matter riots of 2020.

Speaking on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” this Friday, the eponymous host noted that all defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio had done was tell the truth.

“A few days ago, Del Rio pointed out that nobody seems to talk about the BLM riots anymore. Instead, they’re pretending to care about Jan. 6th. He was attacked for this because you’re not allowed to, like, tell the truth at any level whatsoever. So he came back and said he stood by his comments,” Carlson said.

“He thought he had a right to respectfully express himself in the land of the free, but it turns out no. Just hours ago the coach of the Washington Commanders, a fascist moron called Ron Rivera, announced that Jack Del Rio has no right to talk, and he’s being fined $100,000 for doing it.”

“Rivera began by claiming that ‘lives were lost on Jan. 6th,’ which is a lie. Then he continued this way: ‘Our organization will not tolerate any equivalency between those who demanded justice in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the actions of those on Jan. 6th who sought to topple our government,'” Carlson added.

“If you can think of a line more filled with canned dishonesty and propaganda than that, send us a text and tell us what it is, because we can’t. I mean, that’s just flat-out Maoist,” he told viewers. “Basically what he’s saying is shut up, you’re no longer allowed to talk — if you disagree with the orthodoxy, you will be punished. This is an NFL team, and it’s happening everywhere.”

The drama surrounding Del Rio began Monday when he posted a tweet saying he’d “love to understand … why the summer of riots, looting, burning and the destruction of personal property is never discussed but [the Jan. 6th riot] is.”

Look:

A day later, he doubled down, saying during a press conference that “businesses are being burned down, no problem… and then we have a dust-up at the Capitol, nothing burned down… and we’re gonna make that a major deal.”

Listen:

Combined, the remarks triggered a massive backlash that culminated in Del Rio issuing a groveling apology late Wednesday.

“I made comments earlier today in referencing the attack that took place on the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021. Referencing that situation as a dust-up was irresponsible and negligent and I am sorry,” he said.

“I stand by my comments condemning violence in communities across the country. I say that while also expressing my support for peaceful protest in our country. I have fully supported all peaceful protests in America. I love, respect, and support all my fellow coaches, players, and staff that I work with and respect their views and opinions,” he added.

Two days later on Friday, Rivera issued a lengthy statement of his own condemning Del Rio and fining him $100,000.

“His comments do not reflect the organization’s views and are extremely hurtful to our great community here in the DMV. As we saw last night in the hearings, what happened on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 was an act of domestic terrorism. A group of citizens attempted to overturn the results of a free and fair election, and as a result, lives were lost and the Capitol building was damaged,” he said.

“Coach Del Rio did apologize for his comments on Wednesday and he understands the distinction between the events of that dark day and peaceful protests, which are a hallmark of our democracy. He does have the right to voice his opinion as a citizen of the United States and it most certainly is his constitutional right to do so. However, words have consequences and his words hurt a lot of people in our community.”

The statement provoked a torrent of backlash from Del Rio defenders quick to point out that the so-called “peaceful protests” of 2020 were oftentimes full-blown riots:

Vivek Saxena
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