Is Tucker Carlson a racist who supports vigilantes?

The uproar over what Tucker Carlson said after a teenager allegedly shot and killed two people and shot and wounded a third is a shame and a sham. Here is what he said.

"Kenosha devolved into anarchy because the authorities abandoned the people. Those in charge, from the governor on down, refused to enforce the law. They’ve stood back and watched Kenosha burn." (Tweet, almost verbatim transcript.)

"Are we really surprised that looting and arson accelerated to murder? How shocked are we that 17-year olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would?"

Reaction has been severe. Folks says that Carlson justifies or defends the shooter. Robert Reich says “If they don’t take action after this, every one of Fox News’s executives, directors, and advertisers is complicit in Tucker Carlson’s racist, murderous rants."

I see a difference between what Carlson says and a justification, defense, or racist murderous rant. I see a prediction that 17-year olds with rifles decide to maintain order when the government does not. If saying that people steal more when no one stops them does not justify or defend the thief. Nor does saying that more people defend their property themselves when the government fails to protect the property justify or defend the vigilante. Neither response is surprising because the response is predictable. Neither statement justifies or defends the response. 

I suspect that what Reich says about Carlson is a despicable attempt to attract eyeballs; Carlson does not mention race during the segment and takes care to proclaim both that he does not have all the facts and that a trial will determine whether or not the shootings were murder. Reserving judgement is neither racist nor murderous.  

Carlson is no angel here. The headline, "Two people killed in riots", makes the riots appear to be the cause of death. In fact, the allegation is that a vigilante killed two people. That the vigilante was responding to the riots does not make the riots the cause of death.

Discussing the consequences of violent protests and the governments reaction or lack of reaction to them is an important component of a meaningful analysis of the impact of defunding the police and reforming policing. We need more meaningful analysis of the impacts, not partisan narratives.