In a pre-recorded message aired at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Hungary on Thursday, former Fox News star Tucker Carlson told the crowd that he’d “be there with you” if “I ever got fired.”
The irony, of course, is that since Carlson recorded the video—which was filmed in his old Tucker Carlson Tonight studio—he was shockingly fired by Fox News, meaning he possibly could have made time to attend the right-wing confab.
Carlson’s video appearance was aired at the start of a “No Woke Zone” discussion on the first day of Hungary’s version of CPAC. The opening day also featured a speech from Hungary’s far-right authoritarian leader Viktor Orban in which he bemoaned the “virus” of liberalism.
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“Greetings to CPAC Hungary and all you Americans in the audience,” Carlson dramatically exclaimed in the clip. “You are very brave. You’ve landed up on one of [U.S. Agency for International Development chief] Samantha Power’s list, the State Department is keeping track! You went to a forbidden country!”
He continued: “I wish I was there in Budapest. If I ever get fired and have some time and can leave, I will be there with you. But in the meantime, Godspeed, we are thinking of you and cheering you on.”
Carlson has long been a vocal advocate of Orban and his right-wing government. The conservative host has broadcast his primetime Fox News from Hungary, given Orban sycophantic interviews, produced an antisemitic documentary targeting Orban foe George Soros, and appeared at far-right conferences tied to Orban in Budapest. He has also repeatedly implored the American government to implement Orban’s strict immigration and anti-LGBTQ policies while downplaying the Hungarian leader’s anti-democratic rhetoric.
Orban, who has openly embraced the American conservative movement, has returned the favor to Carlson. During his CPAC Hungary speech last year, the populist prime minister called Carlson a “friend” while saying “programs like his should be broadcasted day and night.”
Carlson, meanwhile, is scheduled to make his first public appearance since his Fox News ouster on Thursday, speaking at a fundraiser in Alabama.
