This Reagan White House alumni is ‘appalled’ by Fox News’ pro-Kremlin propaganda

Having served as director of public liaison in the Reagan White House during the 1980s, Never Trump conservative Linda Chavez still has vivid memories of the Cold War. And when she appeared as a guest on The Bulwark’s “Beg to Differ” podcast on March 18, Chavez found it ironic that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s allies in the Kremlin are promoting some of Fox News’ far-right MAGA pundits — especially Tucker Carlson.

Carlson has been an apologist for Putin during the brutal Russian invasion of Ukraine. According to Mother Jones’ David Corn, a Kremlin memo urged state-owned Russian media to feature Carlson more prominently.

Chavez, during her “Beg to Differ” appearance, told host Mona Charen — a veteran conservative columnist, fellow Never Trumper and former Nancy Reagan speechwriter — “I have to say that Tucker Carlson, whom I watched the other night, nearly gave me a stroke when he started essentially apologizing for Vladimir Putin, which he does almost every night on his show…. It is so appalling what is taking place on Fox News. And it’s Tucker Carlson, it’s Laura Ingraham, it’s Greg Gutfeld — Greg, by the way, he is married to a Ukrainian woman. He just had to help his mother-in-law escape from Ukraine. So, I do not understand this.”

President Joe Biden, working closely with the United States’ European allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), has imposed tough economic sanctions against Russia — although he opposes putting U.S. “boots on the ground” in Ukraine or having a no-fly zone over that country. Chavez noted how anti-NATO Carlson has been.

“One of the things that they are doing, in addition to bashing NATO and acting as if NATO is somehow a threat to world peace, is that they are also trying to scare their listeners into thinking that if we do anything more — including providing the S-300s, providing the drone switchblades, providing airplanes, or, God forbid, actually setting up a no-fly zone — that Vladimir Putin is going to launch a nuclear attack,” Chavez told Charen. “And that it’s going to be justified, essentially. I mean, that’s basically what they are arguing. And it is scaring people.”

Chavez continued, “I have members of my extended family — my brother-in-law is a big Tucker Carlson fan. He watches him religiously every night. He’s busy talking to my sister about whether or not they can move to the highlands of Mexico to avoid the nuclear strike that’s going to hit Tucson because of this. This is really pernicious. And the Russian state agencies are actually saying, ‘Use Tucker Carlson on Russian networks — use him as much as you can.’”

Charen responded, “Wait, underline that again, Linda — the Russians are using Tucker Carlson clips on their propaganda televisions shows.”