Honestly with Bari Weiss

Alexei Navalny Died for the Truth. Tucker Carlson Fell for the Lie.

Feb 20, 2024

Peter Savodnik, a senior editor at The Free Press, dives into the tragic story of Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who lost his life fighting for democracy. He critiques Tucker Carlson's recent interview with Putin, where Navalny was notably absent from the conversation. Savodnik argues that Carlson exemplifies a misunderstanding of Russia's realities, revealing how both the left and right have fostered anti-American sentiments. The discussion highlights the dangerous admiration some American figures have for authoritarianism, exploring the implications for democracy.

12:03

Episode guests

Peter Savodnik

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Quick takeaways

Tucker Carlson's failure to address Navalny's plight showcases American right's admiration for Putin's regime.

Navalny's sacrifice embodies a heroic stand against Russian authoritarianism and serves as a beacon for democracy.

Deep dives

Navalny's Opposition to Putin's Regime

The podcast highlights Alexei Navalny's decade-long struggle as a leading democratic challenger to Russian President Vladimir Putin's regime. Navalny faced numerous attempts on his life, including being poisoned with a nerve agent in 2020. Despite the risks, he returned to Russia in 2021, fully aware of the inevitable arrest and imprisonment that awaited him.

False facade of Moscow's wealth

01:43

Intro

7min

The Allure of Authoritarianism: A Misguided Appeal

2min

Alignment with Danger: The Myopia of Modern Politics

2min

Last week, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny joined a long line of ordinary and noble people who were and are the victims of Stalinist tyranny and now Russian authoritarianism.

Just 10 days prior, Tucker Carlson interviewed Putin, Navalny’s nemesis—and soon to be murderer—in a two-hour conversation at the Kremlin. The name Alexei Navalny never came up.

Then, when Carlson appeared onstage at the World Government Summit in Dubai and was asked why he hadn’t pressed Putin about Navalny, he replied: “Every leader kills people. Some kill more than others. Leadership requires killing people.”

Carlson went on to talk about how wonderful the Russian capital was, how it was “so much nicer than any city in my country.” (All onstage in a country that runs on indentured servitude and sharply curbs freedom of expression, mind you.)

Today, Free Press senior editor Peter Savodnik explains why Tucker Carlson—and so many on the American right—are confused about Putin’s Russia, and about what Navalny—a hero of our darkening century—died for. Putin is a warden of the deepest of deep states. So why does Carlson and his lot believe he’s worthy of admiration? And how did so many on the American right succumb to the same idiocy and myopia that grip so many progressive identitarians?

The way the left and the right arrived at their own brand of anti-Americanism was different, Peter argues. But the outcome is the same: this is exactly what the Kremlin wants.

For further reading on Navalny's death, check out:

Alexei Navalny Lived and Died in Truth, by Bari Wiess

Navalny’s Letters from the Gulag, by the Free Press

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