(MENAFN- AsiaNet News) Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News host, is preparing to broadcast an interview with Larry Sinclair, a convicted con artist who has made sensational claims about engaging in drug-fueled sexual activities with Barack Obama. In a promotional clip posted on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Carlson offered a glimpse of the forthcoming interview.
Larry Sinclair has long alleged that he and Obama bought and used cocaine together, culminating in a sexual encounter in 1999. However, Sinclair has never substantiated these allegations with any evidence. He initially made these claims during the 2008 election, even holding a press conference that ultimately led to his arrest due to an outstanding larceny warrant.
The teaser clip for Carlson's interview features Sinclair asserting that in 1999, he provided Obama with $250 to purchase cocaine, which Sinclair subsequently snorted while Obama smoked it. According to the clip, this drug use preceded a sexual encounter between the two men.
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In the video, Carlson characterizes Sinclair's claims regarding Obama as "credible information that he's smoking crack and having sex with dudes."
Sinclair has a lengthy criminal history, including convictions on forgery, fraud, and larceny charges, and has served prison time in Arizona, Florida, and Colorado.
In 2008, when Sinclair first aired his claims, Politico reported on the saga, noting that the "story has generally been ignored by the mainstream media because he's been unable to substantiate his allegations."
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In June 2008, Sinclair rented a room at the National Press Club in Washington DC, where he spoke for an hour, providing explicit details about two alleged sexual liaisons with Obama in 1999, one in a limo and another in a hotel room in Gurnee, Illinois.
Sinclair claimed that a limo driver introduced him to Obama after Sinclair asked for help connecting with someone to "party." He alleged that Obama, then an Illinois state senator, readily introduced himself with his real name and job title.
The press conference ended in Sinclair's arrest on an open warrant from Delaware, reportedly due to a tip-off from liberal bloggers who supported Obama.
For more than a decade, Sinclair's claims were taken seriously only by the furthest fringe of conspiracy theorists and had largely receded from public discourse.
Recently, Carlson revived the long-dormant controversy in a podcast interview.
Carlson, aged 54, speaking on the popular Adam Carolla Show last week, said: "In 2008, it became really clear that Barack Obama had been having sex with men and smoking crack." He referred to Larry Sinclair, who came forward with allegations and even agreed to a lie detector test, which he notably failed in 2008.
Sinclair also accused Obama adviser David Axelrod of bribing the examiners to manipulate the results, according to Courthouse News Service.
Sinclair's history of sworn statements has been questionable. In 2004, he signed an affidavit claiming to be "terminally ill" in an attempt to have a warrant dismissed. However, nearly two decades later, he appears to still be alive.
Carlson was dismissed by Fox News in April and has since produced his own show on X (formerly Twitter). He has claimed that his firing was a condition of Fox News' $787 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems to resolve a lawsuit concerning false claims about the 2020 presidential election.
Other reports have suggested that Carlson was let go due to incendiary communications discovered during the lawsuit. Private messages sent by Carlson containing "highly offensive and crude remarks" were a significant factor in Fox's decision to sever ties with him, according to the New York Times.
One redacted message even included a slur against a senior Fox executive, according to reports from the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, both relying on unnamed sources.