Tucker Carlson calls AOC a ‘moron’ and ‘nasty’ in bizarre video - then immediately agrees with her

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox

Get our free Inside Washington email

Please enter a valid email address

Please enter a valid email address

SIGN UP

I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Tucker Carlson has launched a bizarre attack on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, claiming the progressive Democrat is a “moron” and “nasty” – all while supporting her views on the US economy.

The Fox News host featured an entire segment of his Monday night episode condemning a town hall the lawmaker attended that was hosted by MSNBC and focused on her push for the Green New Deal, a comprehensive proposal to tackle the adverse impacts of climate change on the US economy, national security and public health.

“The very same news outlet that’s spent two years lying to you about Russia brings you a 29-year-old former bartender to teach you about science,” Mr Carlson began, as clips of the congresswoman speaking to MSNBC host Chris Hayes played beside him.

“So it’s official. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a moron and nasty and more self-righteous than any televangelist who ever preached a sermon on cable access. She’s not impressive, she’s awful,” he continued.

Moments later, Mr Carlson added a caveat: “Not everything she says is wrong,” he said, before playing a clip of Ms Ocasio-Cortez discussing the current state of the US economy from the same town hall.

“OK, you hate to admit it, given the source, but try to ignore the way she said it,” he said. “Maybe just print it out and read it. A lot of it’s basically true. Neither party wants to talk about this.”

In the clip Mr Carlson showed, the congresswoman is discussing “runaway income equality,” saying, “we are at one of our most unequal points — economically speaking — in American history.”

“We are dealing with a crisis of how our economy is even made up,” she continued. “Our economy is increasingly financialised, which means we are making profits off of interest, off of leasing your phone, off of doing all of these things, but we aren’t producing and we aren’t innovating in the way need to as an economy.”

Mr Carlson continued to hurl attacks at Ms Ocasio-Cortez after playing the clip, though he claimed “she is one of the very few people who will say the obvious about growing corporate tyranny in this country.”