While on his Russia propaganda vacation, Tucker Carlson accidentally let it slip that he has never been inside an Adli before, resulting in the internet roasting the out-of-touch conservative pundit who so badly wants to be seen as a populist.
Carlson recently traveled to Russia for an interview with Vladimir Putin. The President of Russia typically declines interview requests from the United States but expressed interest in Carlson, mainly because conservatives may provide a pathway to Russian interference in the U.S. Although Putin is often described as a dictator, conservatives love that he has crushed freedom in Russia, including banning the LGBTQ+ movement. Meanwhile, if the country can play into conservative motives and bolster Donald Trump’s chances of returning to office, it will benefit Russia as Republicans continue to halt aid to Ukraine.
As a result, Carlson has embarked on a cringeworthy vacation to prove to the United States that Russia is a much better place to live than America. So far, he has hyped up Russia’s subway stations, grocery stores, and McDonald’s. In one cringey video, he raved about how the subway system has no “graffiti” or “foul smells” and is cleaner and nicer than “anything” in the United States. Additionally, Carlson stated he has been “radicalized” against U.S. leaders because Russia’s grocery stores are allegedly cheaper than the U.S., although he interestingly leaves out that the average wage in Russia is equivalent to just $14,771. Also, sure, many suspect that Putin just had Alexei Navalny killed, but hey, at least the subway stations are nice.
It’s also likely that he just thinks the prices are cheaper because he went to a regular grocery store instead of Whole Foods for the first time in his life. After all, he seems to have given away that he’s never been in an Aldi, so we’re not sure how he even knows what grocery prices are in America.
Tucker Carlson doesn’t know what Aldi is
The grocery store was a big stop on Carlson’s propaganda vacation. In addition to hyping up the prices, he filmed a video gushing over how the grocery store carts can’t be accessed without inserting a coin. Hence, when shoppers are done, they are incentivized to return the cart to get their coin back instead of taking it. You can literally see the gears turning in Carlson’s head as he tries to wrap his mind around this innovative technology. He’s so excited to have found one more way Russia is superior, smarter, and cooler than America because of their nifty cart invention.
Of course, every middle-income American knows that Aldi has the exact same cart setup. Most of us probably grew up with an Aldi store at least somewhat nearby, given that there are over 12,000 stores nationwide. There are probably some who turn their noses up at Aldi because it’s not as bougie as Whole Foods or Target. However, it is a no-frills grocery store where one can find good quality products at a semi-reasonable price. Surely, anyone who wasn’t part of America’s elites would be familiar with the grocery chain.
Internet users were tickled by Carlson’s complete obliviousness to the average American grocery store. No wonder he thinks American groceries are, on average, $400 when he’s clearly never stepped foot in an Aldi. Russia probably looks so foreign and shiny to Carlson because he’s never been grocery shopping or to the subway station before.
The roasts summed up everything wrong with Carlson’s Aldi discovery quite succinctly. A large part of his platform is built on the false claim that he is a rebel against elitists and appeals to and understands the average American citizen. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The truth is that he was born into wealth and now enjoys being a multi-millionaire for spreading conspiracy theories and conservative propaganda.
Additionally, it’s unclear why anyone should care about his opinion of Russia. Perhaps someone who actually has to worry about grocery prices, traveling via the subway, or eating at McDonald’s should be evaluating these components of the country instead of a man who is so privileged he has never experienced shopping at an Aldi before. Or maybe he could reduce his salary to $14,000 a year since he’s so determined to get the whole Russian experience.
(featured image: Rich Polk/Getty)
