Fox News host Tucker Carlson admitted Sunday that he yelled at a man during dinner at a country club, but said he did so only after the diner called his teenage daughter an obscene name and asked if she were “Tucker’s whore.”
Mr. Carlson’s statement came after anti-Trump lawyer Michael Avenatti said Saturday that he was investigating the Oct. 13 incident on behalf of his client, Juan Granados, and accused the conservative pundit of “assault.”
Mr. Carlson countered that he and his son confronted Mr. Granados after his 19-year-old daughter returned to the table in tears, saying that he had called her a “f—-ing c—-” and asked, “Are you Tucker’s whore?” at the Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville, Virginia.
“Last month one of my children was attacked by a stranger at dinner,” said Mr. Carlson in a Sunday statement. “For her sake, I was hoping to keep the incident private. It’s now being politicized by the Left.”
The episode comes with leftists targeting conservative politicians and media figures in their private lives, including Mr. Carlson. Last week, a crowd of antifa activists chanted “we know where you sleep at night” outside his home, prompting his wife, who was inside alone, to call 911.
Mr. Carlson said the club revoked Mr. Granados’s membership after a three-week investigation into the incident.
“My son, who is also a student, went to the bar to confront the man,” said Mr. Carlson. “My son asked the man if he had called his sister a ’whore’ and a ’c—-.’ The man admitted he had, and again became profane. My son threw a glass of red wine in the man’s face and told him to leave the bar, which he soon did.”
Last month one of my children was attacked by a stranger at dinner. For her sake, I was hoping to keep the incident private. It’s now being politicized by the Left. Here’s what happened: pic.twitter.com/rwNoFYxMFv
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) November 11, 2018
Mr. Avenatti, who posted a video of the incident apparently taken by another diner, described Mr. Carlson’s statement as an “absolute lie,” insisting Mr. Granados never cursed at the girl nor admitted to doing so.
The lawyer also Mr. Carlson’s daughter of underage drinking, his son of “assault and battery,” and a friend who joined them of “assault.”
“As a father of two teenage daughters myself, I find it disgraceful that Tucker seeks to justify his behavior by falsely hiding behind his family,” Mr. Avenatti tweeted.
1/2 - We are investigating an alleged assault on a gay latino immigrant committed by T. Carlson and/or members of his inner circle at a club in VA in Oct. It likely includes underage drinking in violation of VA law. Link to a portion of the incident:https://t.co/QcbCRHrplP
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) November 10, 2018
The video showed Mr. Carlson yelling at a man as other diners attempted to separate them, saying, “You better get the f—- out of here” and “Get the f—- out of here,” but denied assaulting Mr. Granados, calling the allegation “a lie.”
“It took enormous self-control not to beat the man with a chair, which is what I wanted to do,” said Mr. Carlson. “I think any father can understand the overwhelming rage and shock that I felt seeing my teenage daughter attacked by a stranger. But I restrained myself. I did not assault this man, and neither did my son.”
On his show “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” the host regularly refers to Mr. Avenatti, best known for representing porn star Stormy Daniels, as a “creepy porn lawyer.” He also represented Justice Brett Kavanaugh accuser Julie Swetnick.
Mr. Avenatti said that before the video began, Mr. Carlson told Mr. Granados, a gay immigrant from Buenos Aires who recently became a U.S. citizen, to “go back where you came from.”
In a Sunday statement, Mr. Granados blasted Mr. Carlson’s telling of the events as “a complete fabrication,” insisting that Mr. Carlson, his son and the friend were the “aggressors,” and that the friend grabbed him and threatened violence.
“I intend on pursuing possible charges against Tucker for assault, against his son for assault and battery, and against his ’friend’ for assault and battery,” Mr. Granados said in Sunday statement. “I did not deserve to be treated that way that night and I did not deserve to be told to ’go back where you came from.’”
Here is a statement from my client regarding the incident with Tucker Carlson and Tucker’s fabricated version of events. As a father of two teenage daughters myself, I find it disgraceful that Tucker seeks to justify his behavior by falsely hiding behind his family. #Coward pic.twitter.com/j9uX7pRdyP
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) November 11, 2018
Mr. Carlson said he didn’t know the man was gay or Latino, “not that it would have mattered. What happened on October 13 has nothing to do with identity politics.”
“It was a grotesque violation of decency. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life,” Mr. Carlson said.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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