Tucker Carlson did not approve of the words or the accent that former President Barack Obama used at John Lewis’s funeral, so he decided to blast him.
The conservative TV host, who is a fierce supporter of President Donald Trump, claimed that Obama sounded like a greasy politician who used a fake accent while “desecrating” the event that was supposed to be a final goodbye to the civil rights leader.
Carlson, who was angry that Obama went after Trump’s relentless effort to suppress voting rights, said: “Barack Obama showed up at congressman John Lewis’ funeral today, and Obama claims he was there to eulogize his friend, and that’s not true, and that’s not what he did. Instead, Obama gave a divisive and deeply dishonest campaign speech in church.”
He went on to explained: “It’s hard to believe that clip is real, but it is, down to the cloying, fake accent, Mr. Hawaii Guy. But take three steps back. Imagine if some greasy politician showed up at your loved one’s funeral and started throwing around stupid partisan talking points about Senate procedure. Can you imagine that? You would be shocked if that happened. You’d probably walkout. Desecrating a funeral with campaign slogans? What kind of person would do that?”
Obama did tear into Trump and other GOP members for voter suppression and gerrymandering.
Obama stated: “If politicians want to honor John, and I’m so grateful for the legacy of work of all the Congressional leaders who are here, but there’s a better way than a statement calling him a hero. You want to honor John? Let’s honor him by revitalizing the law that he was willing to die for. And by the way, naming it the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, that is a fine tribute. But John wouldn’t want us to stop there, trying to get back to where we already were. Once we pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, we should keep marching to make it even better. By making sure every American is automatically registered to vote, including former inmates who’ve earned their second chance.”
He added: “By adding polling places, and expanding early voting, and making Election Day a national holiday, so if you are someone who is working in a factory, or you are a single mom who has got to go to her job and doesn’t get time off, you can still cast your ballot. By guaranteeing that every American citizen has equal. representation in our government, including the American citizens who live in Washington, D.C., and in Puerto Rico. They are Americans. By ending some of the partisan gerrymandering — so that all voters have the power to choose their politicians, not the other way around. And if all this takes eliminating the filibuster — another Jim Crow relic — in order to secure the God-given rights of every American, then that’s what we should do.”
The Hawaii native concluded by: “And yet, even if we do all this — even if every bogus voter suppression law was struck off the books today — we have got to be honest with ourselves that too many of us choose not to exercise the franchise; that too many of our citizens believe their vote won’t make a difference, or they buy into the cynicism that, by the way, is the central strategy of voter suppression, to make you discouraged, to stop believing in your own power.”
Obama is even pushing for the end of the filibuster in the Senate.