Tucker Carlson recently hosted an exclusive interview with Larry Sinclair, a convicted fraudster who has been peddling uncorroborated tales involving former U.S. President Barack Obama since the 2008 presidential campaign. During the interview, Sinclair recanted his widely debunked claims of engaging in illegal drug use and sexual activities with Obama, dating back to when Obama was a state senator. Despite Sinclair’s long criminal record, including numerous counts of fraud, and a lack of any evidence or witnesses to support his claims, his story has been picked up and discussed seriously by some right-wing media figures, including Ben Shapiro.
The readiness of some individuals to believe and propagate the discredited story is just sad…
There was no effort made from Carlson and Shapiro to fact-check Sinclair’s allegations or to demand evidence or corroborating details for his outrageous claims, which include a supposed involvement of Obama in a murder case.
There are many inconsistencies and suspicious details in Sinclair’s narrative, such as the inability to provide the exact location of their alleged encounter or to produce any witnesses. Sinclair had previously failed a polygraph test regarding these claims and was arrested for outstanding warrants related to theft and forgery immediately following a 2008 press conference where he first publicized these allegations.
TL;DR: Tucker Carlson and Ben Shapiro give a platform to Larry Sinclair, a convicted fraudster with a history of deception, to recirculate debunked and unsupported allegations about Barack Obama from over two decades ago, drawing criticism for entertaining clearly baseless claims.