Much of the political and media establishment have been unified when it comes to their messaging on the Russia/Ukraine situation. Two people who challenge this consensus are former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) and Fox News host Tucker Carlson, the host of America’s most watched cable news show. These two have attempted to raise awareness of the newly reported information that the U.S. Government has connections to biological research facilities in Ukraine, and that we should be concerned about the possibility of pathogens escaping, as the labs are located within an active war zone.
.@MittRomney and others say that I'm treasonous because I called for a ceasefire around the 25+ biolabs in Ukraine to prevent the breach of such facilities & escape of pathogens, and prevent more pandemics. Romney should resign. pic.twitter.com/nNhmM74xo1
— Tulsi Gabbard
(@TulsiGabbard) March 14, 2022
The U.S. government confirmed there are biolabs in Ukraine. But now anyone who says that out loud is accused of treason. pic.twitter.com/8s6UPhBoAL
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) March 15, 2022
Both Gabbard and Carlson have been under attack by establishment media and politicians after deviating from the approved consensus. Those who have been criticizing the former congresswoman and the Fox News host have resulted largely to ad hominem attacks, even insinuating that their deviation from the narrative is akin to treason.
Nowhere was that more evident than on ABC’s The View, a show that claims neutrality by having one right-leaning personality (though the five hosts seem to agree on the most important questions).
RED SCARE: @CNN's Ana Navarro just called for a DOJ Task Force to investigate @TuckerCarlson and @TulsiGabbard for being "foreign agents" of Russia.
This is not a drill. They want to use the federal government to crush all dissent in America. pic.twitter.com/OtIup3ZAON
— Clint Ehrlich (@ClintEhrlich) March 14, 2022
On Monday, former Republican strategist Ana Navarro suggested that the Department of Justice investigate Carlson and Gabbard for “shilling for Putin”. “And I think, DOJ, in the same way it is setting up a task force to investigate (Russian) oligarchs, should look into people who are Russian propagandists and shilling for Putin…If you are a foreign asset to a dictator, they should be investigated”.
Navarro continued to take personal shots at Gabbard without refuting her remarks. “…who is this woman? She’s a, you know, she’s no longer in Congress. She’s a failed presidential candidate”. Cohost Whoopi Goldberg agreed, saying: “They used to arrest people for doin’ stuff like this”. Throughout the discussion, the hosts did not provide any evidence that Carlson and Gabbard were being deceptive, but only took personal shots and accused them of spreading Russian propaganda.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) has taken shots at Gabbard, calling her remarks “treasonous.” Gabbard has since fired back at Romney, urging him to either find evidence that she is lying or resign from the Senate. “So, Senator Romney, you have a choice: out of pride, continue to deny the truth or admit you are wrong, apologize, and resign. Aloha,” Gabbard wrote in a recent Twitter thread.
Going back to the start of the conflict several weeks ago, both Carlson and Gabbard were criticizing the U.S. and NATO foreign policy establishment for creating the conditions that they believe prompted Putin to invade Ukraine. Now, they are warning about the bio labs. According to the establishment and its media allies, Carlson is taking the situation out of context and repeating Kremlin propaganda. On his Monday show, Carlson posed the question, “Ok, what’s the right context? We asked, no one told us.”