Russia has assembled its army on Ukraine’s eastern border, and many are worried Vladimir Poutine will order an invasion of the country...
Russia has assembled its army on Ukraine’s eastern border, and many are worried Vladimir Poutine will order an invasion of the country as he did in 2014. A growing number of politicians and pundits from all political walks of life have called on the President Joe Biden to take various measures to prevent an invasion, as well as to prepare a response in the event that it does occur.
Anyone who watched Tucker-Carlson and Sean Hannity on Fox News recently noted that their views on this situation are quite different. Carlson has expressed concern over the bipartisan push to get more involved in a conflict he says has few strategic implications for the United States. Hannity, meanwhile, excoriated Biden for not doing enough to deter Putin.
The hosts’ respective monologues on Thursday night were instructive of that, and it’s high time these two debated the matter among themselves in Ali-vs.-Frazier, Rumble in the Jungle-the fashion. This is the debate we need.
“In the next few days, Russia could violate Ukraine’s eastern border,” Carlson said Thursday night. “That, we are told, cannot stand.”
Carlson aired a montage of elected officials and pundits on various networks — including Fox News — calling on Biden to do more to stop Russia from invading Ukraine. (The following night, Carlson hosted Tulsi Gabbard, who used her show to call out the Fox News contributor Mike Pompeo a “warmonger”.)
“Oh, they’re all red in the face,” Carlson said. “But it’s not the usual partisan refrain. It’s the whole choir. You just saw representatives of every faction in Washington, from Adam Schiff at Dan Crenshaw — not as different as they look — and every model in between. And all of them are promoting war against Russia in the name of our new and deeply loved ally, the Ukrainian government. “Vladimir Putin is our most dangerous enemy!” they shout. “We can’t let them hurt Ukraine!”
The story on Hannity that night was very different, as the host slammed Biden for a second night in a row. More than twenty-four hours earlier, the president had hinted that a US response to Russian aggression against Ukraine would depend on whether or not it took the form of a “minor incursion.” The White House later cleaned up his comments.
Hannity pointed to reactions from Ukrainian officials who expressed shock at Biden’s remarks.
“Joe Biden has now basically invited Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine,” Hannity told viewers Thursday night. “Democrats? They might care less. The crowd, the media, don’t care. Joe Biden literally gives Putin a waiver to build the [Nord Stream 2] pipeline.”
The night before, Hannity lamented that “our haters are watching this” and said Biden was too “weak” to stand up to Putin.
Hannity immediately follows Tucker Carlson tonight, so that any debate can be incorporated into the network’s regular programming schedule. Of course, Fox News doesn’t need advice to win big in the ratings. It works very well in this department on its own. But a debate on a widely discussed burning issue between the two most-watched prime-time hosts would be a ratings boon.
This is an opinion piece. The opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author.
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