quote:

Fox News host Tucker Carlson broke from his network’s pattern of downplaying the coronavirus outbreak, criticizing on Monday those who “have spent weeks minimizing what is clearly a very serious problem.”

“‘It’s just partisan politics,’ they say. ‘Calm down. In the end, this is just like the flu,’” Carlson said on his show. “It’s definitely not just the flu.”

quote:

“People you trust, people you probably voted for, have spent weeks minimizing what is clearly a very serious problem,” Carlson said. “Though these people have good intentions as they say this, many of them anyway ― they may not know any better, maybe they’re just not paying attention or maybe they believe they’re serving some higher cause by shading reality ― and there’s an election coming up, [think it’s] best not to say anything that might help the other side. We get it, but they’re wrong.”

quote:

At a news conference, Trump teased measures meant to ease economic fears that led to Wall Street’s worst day in a decade.

But Carlson said Monday night that “tax cuts and lower rates won’t reopen factories that have shut down to contain the virus.”

“Our country is likely to experience a painful period we are powerless to stop. None of this is justification to panic, we shouldn’t panic. In crisis it’s more important than ever to be calm,” he said.

“But staying calm is not the same as remaining complacent and does not mean assuring people that everything will be fine. We don’t know that,” Carlson continued. “Instead it’s better to tell the truth. That is always the surest sign of strength.”