Tucker Carlson has spent the past week sinking to all new lows. Not only has he vocally praised the 17-year-old gunman from Kenosha, but he also claimed that there was a vaccine for HIV during an especially caustic rant about global pandemic response.
Carlson is certainly no stranger to bad takes, but this week has taken the cake.
Carlson referenced the non-existent HIV vaccine in a long-winded rant criticizing the state of Virginia's decision to make any forthcoming SARS-CoV-2 vaccine mandatory.
Carlson was evidently enraged by the idea that the state would make one vaccine mandatory without doing the same for others—accidentally approaching a potentially good idea in his attempt to discredit the decision.
"We get a new benchmark for getting back to normal: when we have a vaccine. Everything will be fine once we can vaccinate against [the pandemic]…"
"The state of Virginia has announced that when a vaccine finally does arrive, it will be mandatory. Not all vaccines–Virginia will not require vaccines for hepatitis or HIV."
"They won't require a vaccine for meningitis even though meningitis kills a lot more, say, college students, than coronavirus does."
While an HIV vaccine does not exist, we do have prophylactic and post exposure treatments (known as PrEP and PEP, respectively) to prevent the spread of the virus. Unlike a vaccine, which usually only requires a few doses to help the body generate immunity, PrEP and PEP often have to be taken for an extended period of time.
Many colleges and universities throughout the country do require the meningitis vaccine, as the disease affects approximately 1.2 million people per year, killing about 135,000 of those affected.
Carlson then continued on to a bizarre rant about people being "under arrest."
"But once we get a corona vaccine, all will be well. But now they've changed that. Not true anymore."
"According to a new announcement from the World Health Organization, a vaccine–even if we get one–will not be the end of all this. It will never end. You can get your injection. They'll make you get it. But you'll still be under arrest."
Carlson also criticised the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), claiming that Dr. Tedros Adhanom, who holds a PhD from the University of Nottingham, is "not a doctor"—apparently misunderstanding the difference between a Doctorate of Philosophy and a Medical Doctorate. Either degree makes someone a doctor.
He further accused the WHO of using the pandemic to push an agenda about the importance of slowing climate change.
You can view Carlson's whole screed on the subject below.
Tucker: When do we get America back?youtu.be
Carlson's rant about a potential SARS-CoV-2 vaccine came shortly before he praised the 17-year-old who opened fire in a crowd during protests in Kenosha, WI. The teen is accused of killing 2 people during the protest.
Of the teen's actions, Carlson said:
"How shocked are we that 17-year-olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would? Everyone can see what was happening in Kenosha. It was getting crazier by the hour."
It remains to be seen whether Carlson will face any repercussions from his employer for his inflammatory rhetoric but, given that this isn't new, it seems unlikely.
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