President Donald Trump brought Fox News host Tucker Carlson to North Korea on Sunday instead of his own national security adviser, John Bolton.
Several journalists reported seeing Carlson on the sidelines of Trump’s historic visit to the the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea, and the hosts of “Fox & Friends” confirmed Carlson was there during a phone interview with him.
Meanwhile, Bolton was shipped off to Mongolia over the weekend.
While speaking to his Fox colleagues, Carlson defended Trump’s friendliness with the brutal North Korean dictator.
“[North Korea]’s a disgusting place, obviously. So there’s no defending it,” Carlson said. “On the other hand, you’ve got to be honest about what it means to lead a country. It means killing people.”
“Not on the scale that the North Koreans do, but a lot of countries commit atrocities, including a number that we’re closely allied with,” he continued.
Trump called the visit “a great honor” and has invited Kim to come to the U.S.
This wouldn’t be the first time Carlson’s gotten directly involved in Trump’s foreign policy: The Daily Beast reported that the Fox host has been privately urging Trump not to go to war with Iran and criticizing Trump’s more “hawkish” advisers–which includes Bolton.
Watch Carlson speak below:
Tucker Carlson defends Trump's friendliness with brutal dictator Kim Jong-Un: "You've got to be honest about what it means to lead a country. It means killing people." pic.twitter.com/Pzbek65vMm
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) June 30, 2019
