TUCKER Carlson’s claim that the National Security Agency is spying on him to try to take his show off the air has been dismissed by White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.
She told reporters traveling with the president to Wisconsin on Tuesday that the agency is focused on “foreign threats” and not individuals on US soil.
The Fox News host made the claims on his Monday night show, alleging that his team has confirmed the spying with a government whistleblower.
He called the revelation “scary.”
Reporters on Tuesday pushed Psaki about Carlson’s claims during a briefing.
“Tucker Carlson said that the NSA is spying on him,” a reporter said.
“Is the administration aware of any espionage or listening efforts on US citizens by the NSA, and is Tucker Carlson one of them?”
Psaki immediately brushed off the allegations as she redirected questions to the agency and intelligence community itself.
“The NSA has, I think you are well aware, everyone’s aware, everyone on this plane is aware, I should say, is an entity that focuses on foreign threats and individuals who are attempting to do us harm on foreign soil,” she told reporters.
“So that is their purview, but beyond that, I would point you to the intelligence community.”
Carlson had claimed on Monday that the agency is spying on his electronic communications and “planning to leak them in an attempt to take his show off the air.”
He offered no evidence other than the whistleblower’s confirmation.
The host insisted that there was “no other possible” way the NSA could have the information they have.
“Spying on opposition journalists is incompatible with democracy,” Carlson said.
“If they are doing it to us, and again, they are definitely doing it to us, they are almost certainly doing it to others.”
Carlson claimed that his team was initially skeptical about the spying claims, noting that “it is illegal for the NSA to spy on American citizens.
“It’s a crime. It’s not a third-world country. Things like that should not happen in America.”
The host added, “Unfortunately, they do happen. And in this case, they did happen.”
He accused the NSA of capturing information that was available only through his own texts, and doing it for “political reasons.”
Carlson said his team filed a Freedom of Information Act request for all information the NSA and other agencies have gathered about his show.
He said they don’t expect to hear back, however, since only Congress can force the intelligence agencies to give up information.
Carlson’s claims have not been covered by any other Fox shows or hosts, and it is not referenced on the network’s website.
He made the comments as part of a section on Biden naming white supremacy as one of the greatest threats in the US.
The TV personality claims he spoke to FBI agents who told him there are “few crimes committed by avowed white supremacists.”
“Americans are, in fact, much more likely to die from a lightning strike than at the hands of a white supremacist,” Carlson argued.
“White supremacy may be ugly, many opinions are, but it is not a meaningful threat to the nation.”
Carlson is Fox’s highest-rated host.
