Far-right Fox News host Tucker Carlson has repeatedly broadcast anti-immigrant sentiments to millions of viewers on his nightly show.
He's amplified the white supremacist Great Replacement theory, he's said immigrants make cities "dirtier," and—in leaked recordings—referred to Iraqis as "semiliterate primitive monkeys."
So it's no surprise that Carlson has already begun drumming up hatred for a wave of Afghan refugees coming to the United States following the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, despite the fact that many of these refugees were crucial in assisting U.S. soldiers on the ground in the region.
In his latest xenophobic screed, Carlson claimed that Democrats were calling for more refugees in order to turn swing states blue in the upcoming 2022 and 2024 elections.
Watch below.
Tucker is outright arguing that Afghan refugees, who cannot vote, are being settled in swing states in order to fli… https://t.co/KCFcl9AgvR— nikki mccann ramírez (@nikki mccann ramírez) 1630541522.0
Carlson said:
"[Democrats] are flooding swing districts with refugees they know will become loyal Democratic party voters. They're opening the southern border in more than 200,000 illegal migrants per month. That's the equivalent of two Afghan airlifts every 30 days."
Of course, the claim is absurd.
In order to even be eligible for U.S. citizenship—and potentially gain the right to vote—refugees must be lawful permanent residents of the United States for at least five years, according to U.S. Customs and Immigration.
Carlson almost certainly knows this, but seized on the widespread belief of his viewers that undocumented immigrants and non-citizens somehow vote in numbers massive enough to steal elections.
People called him out on it.
An entire anti refugee narrative will be built around this, because it’s “fair to ask if our elections are being ma… https://t.co/FoDW2Atykx— Michael Kaplan (@Michael Kaplan) 1630587630.0
Of course, he doesn't mention they can't vote.. https://t.co/rkdoqYYxoB— Peggy Mueller 🗽 (@Peggy Mueller 🗽) 1630543408.0
Tucker Carlson just proved that on Fox News, brains & intelligence aren't a requirement to be a host, just hatred &… https://t.co/S1659qh6cy— Tony Hussein #DemVoice1 (@Tony Hussein #DemVoice1) 1630542487.0
This axxhole fails to say it takes 1-3 years to get a GREEN CARD first (permanent residence) & then you MUST wait 5… https://t.co/DBkqzIjAPo— Nancy Hernandez (@Nancy Hernandez) 1630547948.0
The racist buzzwords in his argument didn't go unchecked either.
Meanwhile, on the nightly white supremacy front… https://t.co/3ix6ShcVHp— Mehdi Hasan (@Mehdi Hasan) 1630587071.0
After spending a week pretending to care about the plight of Afghans to try and “own” Biden, the Goebbels and Himml… https://t.co/AO1nLS3YVg— Ron Filipkowski (@Ron Filipkowski) 1630542243.0
I wonder if Tucker would come across as more authentic for his target audience if he spoke in wild mannerisms with… https://t.co/bdbjj3IyeB— Jürgen "jkr" Kraus (@Jürgen "jkr" Kraus) 1630588110.0
There are growing calls to increase the cap on refugees in the United States.