Jon Stewart, Congresswoman Alexandria-Ocasio Cortez, Meghan McCain, and many other stars in the political world reacted to the news that conservative news anchor Tucker Carlson had left Fox News on Monday, April 24. Tucker, 53, had been a staple on Fox for over a decade, and the network announced that his final show had been the one that aired on Friday, April 21 in a statement. “FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways. We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor,” the organization said.
Besides announcing Tucker’s departure, the network also revealed that in place of Tucker Carlson Tonight different personalities from the network would serve as rotating hosts on Fox News Tonight in the time slot until a permanent replacement was found. The decision for the two to part ways came about a week after Fox settled the defamation lawsuit from Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million.
Figures from across the political spectrum reacted to the news that Tucker was leaving the network, with some celebrating the move, and many were seemingly shocked by his departure after 14 years as one of the network’s biggest anchors.
Jon Stewart
👀
— Jon Stewart (@jonstewart) April 24, 2023
The former Daily Show host, who had been a frequent critic of Tucker’s (even calling him out during an epic appearance on Crossfire in 2004), had a simple response, seemingly surprised by the news. Jon just shared the eyes emoji on Twitter.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) April 24, 2023
New York Rep. Alexandria-Ocasio Cortez seemed very surprised by the news, simply quote-tweeting a reporter who had shared the press release. She wrote, “Wow.” She also retweeted her MSNBC interview with former Press Secretary Jen Psaki where she accused Tucker and other Fox personalities of inciting violence. “When you look at what Tucker Carlson and what some of these other folks on Fox do, it is very, very clearly incitement of violence,” she said. “That is the line that I think we have to be willing to contend with.”
Meghan McCain
It’s a bad day to be a misogynist on cable man…
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) April 24, 2023
Former View co-host and political commentator Meghan McCain also reacted to the news, while sharing a tweet making reference to CNN anchor Don Lemon, who also announced that he’d been fired from his network. She referenced the accusations against both anchors that they’d each been misogynistic. “It’s a bad day to be a misogynist on cable man,” she tweeted.
‘The View’ Hosts
FOX NEWS PARTS WAYS WITH TUCKER CARLSON: After Fox News announced that host Tucker Carlson and the media company have "agreed to part ways," #TheView co-hosts react to the breaking news. https://t.co/cVclFZQmjA pic.twitter.com/hMkKPlznnS
— The View (@TheView) April 24, 2023
Meghan’s former colleagues on The View celebrated the news. While Whoopi Goldberg said they’d discuss more in-depth during Tuesday’s show, she did encourage the co-hosts and audience to “wave” goodbye to Tucker. Ana Navarro also led the studio audience in singing “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye.”
Joy Behar
My guess is that Lachlan is behind this. They will be hemorrhaging money over there at Fox and that’s one thing fascists can’t abide. Good day, America! And Buh Bye.
— Joy Behar (@JoyVBehar) April 24, 2023
While Joy Behar was not on the panel on The View for Monday’s show, she also bid Tucker farewell in a tweet. She speculated that Lachlan Murdoch was a driving force after the Dominion settlement. “My guess is that Lachlan is behind this. They will be hemorrhaging money over there at Fox and that’s one thing fascists can’t abide. Good day, America! And Buh Bye,” she wrote.
Alyssa Farah Griffin
Stunned by the Tucker Carlson news. At the end of the day, lies spread on Fox News cost the company nearly a billion $$. Even the most watched man on cable news can’t make up for that.
Election lies have hurt the country & immeasurably hurt the GOP. Hope this is a turning pt.
— Alyssa Farah Griffin (@Alyssafarah) April 24, 2023
View host Alyssa Farah Griffin expanded her thoughts on Tucker’s departure in a tweet after the show. While she said she was “stunned” by the news, she admitted that she hoped that this marked a change in the Republican party. “At the end of the day, lies spread on Fox News cost the company nearly a billion $$. Even the most watched man on cable news can’t make up for that,” she wrote. “Election lies have hurt the country & immeasurably hurt the GOP. Hope this is a turning pt.”
Chrissy Teigen
correspondents dinner convo about to be *lit*
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) April 24, 2023
With similar news that Don Lemon was out at CNN, Chrissy Teigen said that the White House Correspondents Dinner would likely have very interesting gossip to catch up on in the past week. “Correspondents dinner convo about to be lit,” she wrote.