Tucker Carlson says blaming white supremacy for mass shootings is a "hoax"

In the past, bowtied racist Tucker Carlson defended statutory rape, said women were "primitive" and "need to be quiet," and claimed that white people weren't "designed to digest" life alongside immigrants. Now, he says, white supremacy isn't even a thing.

"It's actually not a real problem in America," Carlson said. He then added: "This is a hoax, just like the Russia hoax. It's a conspiracy theory used to divide the country and keep a hold on power."

Carlson's argument is belied by many experts and seemingly contradicted by a recent wave of deadly attacks by men motivated by those views. As The Washington Post's Greg Miller reported on Monday, violence tied to far-right ideologies has killed roughly as many Americans since 9/11 as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State combined.

Trump has faced heavy criticism for his role in stoking white racial grievances. Numerous Democratic presidential candidates denounced Trump after El Paso for boosting "white nationalism," while polling has consistently found that most Americans believe he's encouraged white supremacists. The president has often called Hispanic migration an "invasion" — language echoed in a manifesto police believe the accused El Paso shooter posted online decrying a "Hispanic invasion of Texas."

He's the living incarnation of that old Simpsons gag about Fox News proving how racist it was by claiming not to be racist while taking pride in its popularity with racists.

UPDATE: