A recently launched political action committee meant to sway ex-Fox News host Tucker Carlson to run for president in 2024 has shut down after a legal threat from Carlson’s team.
The committee, called Draft Tucker PAC, unveiled its first ad only days ago. The commercial was meant to run on Newsmax for a week, but it wont have the chance.
It praised Tucker for mocking “woke nonsense” and described him as “witty and sharp”.
The PAC’s chair, GOP donor Chris Ekstrom, admittedly only knows Carlson “vaguely”.
He received a cease-and-desist letter from Carlson’s lawyer, Harmeet Dhillon, on Monday.
“Mr. Carlson will not run for President in 2024 under any circumstances, and therefore your misrepresentations are damaging to Mr. Carlson and defrauding his supporters,” said the letter, obtained by The Hill.
“If you do not immediately cease and desist your efforts to solicit money to ‘draft’ Mr. Carlson, we will use every legal means at our disposal to vindicate his rights and protect his supporters from these misrepresentations.”
Dhillon further wrote that the PAC did “not have Mr. Carlson’s permission or support to use his name, image, or likeness in your efforts” and accused it of being a guise to collect donor data which it would then sell to unrelated political fundraising operations for its own financial benefit.
In response to the letter, Draft Tucker PAC said it asked Newsmax to pull the ads currently running.
“Tucker’s attorney has contacted us to let us know that Tucker is not a candidate for president nor has any intentions of running and asked us to cease all activities on his behalf. We are going to honor that request,” spokesman Charlie Kolean said in a statement.
Ekstrom Strikes Back
Ekstrom, who also funded the PAC’s startup activity, said it had not widely fundraised at this point in time and would refund the small amount it raised thus far.
In a text message statement reminiscent of former President Trump’s style, Ekstrom hit back at Carlson’s lawyer’s claims.
“I’d like to add that I am TOTALLY OPPOSED to SCAMPAC’s & have NEVER profited (unlike Harmeet) from my political activities. Indeed, I have spent a great deal of money exposing the narcissistic perfidy rampant in Republican politics. Especially at the so-called “top”; which, in reality is a abysmal SEWER of losers, weaklings & liars.”
He further called Dhillon a “failed politician that wouldn’t know or understand a good political move unless it’s the immediate gratification of grandstanding for fools & know-nothings on Twitter.”
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