"TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT."

YESTERDAY AS YOU KNOW AN

AMERICAN AIR STRIKE KILLED A

GENERAL CALLED QASSEM SOLEIMANI.

FOR THE PAST 11 YEARS SOLEIMANI

OPERATED --

IN THAT ROLE, SOLEIMANI WAS

BELIEVED TO BE A PATRON OF THE

SHIA MILITIA THAT ATTACKED U.S.

TROOPS DURING THE IRAQ WAR HE

APPEARED HE WAS ALSO A MAJOR

PLAYER IN SYRIA DURING THEIR

CIVIL WAR AS WELL AS IN THE

CAMPAIGN AGAINST ISIS.

HE WAS LITTLE KNOWN TO THE

AMERICAN PUBLIC, SOLEIMANI WAS

AMONG THE MOST FAMOUS LIVING

FIGURES IN IRAN AND ALSO ONE OF

THE MOST POWERFUL.

SECOND ONLY TO THE SUPREME

LEADER.

THE IRANIAN GOVERNMENT IS

ALREADY VOWED TO EXTRACT

FORCEFUL REVENGE AGAINST THE

U.S. AND IN RESPONSE TO HIS

DEATH.

WHETHER THAT WAS FORMED IS

REMAINS TO BE SEEN.

BY THE NEXT TIME THE SHOW AIRS,

WE COULD BE ENGAGED IN A

CONFLICT, A REAL CONFLICT WITH

IRAN.

FROM IRAN'S PERSPECTIVE WE ARE

ALREADY THERE.

IF THE IRANIAN FORCES KILLED THE

CHAIRMAN OF OUR JOINT CHIEFS OF

STAFF, WOULD YOU CONSIDER AN ACT

OF WAR?

WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY WASN'T

JUST ANOTHER SYMBOLIC BOMBING OF

THE KIND WE'VE SEEN IN SYRIA, IT

WAS A PIVOT POINT.

WASHINGTON UNDERSTOOD THAT

IMMEDIATELY.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL INVOLVED

IN ELIMINATING QASSEM SOLEIMANI

TWEETED GRIST DISGRACED JOHN

BOLTON.

HOPE THIS IS THE FIRST STEP TO

REGIME CHANGE IN TEHRAN.

THAT OF COURSE HAS BEEN THE

NEOCONSERVATIVE OBJECTIVE ALL

ALONG.

THE PRESIDENT HAS FOR YEARS

OPPOSED THAT OBJECTIVE IN THE

STATEMENT SAID THAT REGIME

CHANGE IN WAR ARE THE POINT AT

ALL.

>> WE TOOK ACTION LAST NIGHT TO

STOP A WAR.

WE DID NOT TAKE ACTION TO START

A WAR.

WE DO NOT SEEK REGIME CHANGE,

HOWEVER THE IRANIAN REGIME'S

AGGRESSION IN THE REGION

INCLUDING THE USE OF PROXY

FIGHTERS TO DESTABILIZE ITS

ENABLERS MUST END AND IT MUST

END NOW.

IF AMERICANS ANYWHERE ARE

THREATENED, WE HAVE ALL OF THOSE

TARGETS ALREADY FULLY IDENTIFIED

IN THE I AM READY AND PREPARED

TO TAKE WHATEVER ACTION IS

NECESSARY.

>> Tucker: ACCORDING TO

SECRETARY OF STATE MIKE POMPEO,

SOLEIMANI WAS KILLED FOR LEADING

ATTACKS ON AMERICA.

THOSE ATTACKS WOULD'VE HAPPENED

IN THE MIDDLE EAST, NOT ON

AMERICA.

>> THE PRESIDENT'S DECISION TO

REMOVE QASSEM SOLEIMANI FROM THE

BATTLEFIELD SAVED AMERICAN

LIVES.

THERE'S NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT.

HE WAS ACTIVELY PLOTTING THE

REGION TO TAKE ACTION, BIG

ACTIONS AS HE DESCRIBED IT, THEY

WOULD UP AT DOZENS IF NOT

HUNDREDS OF AMERICAN LIVES AT

RISK.

LAST NIGHT WITH THE TIME WE NEED

TO DISTRACT AND MAKE SURE THIS

IMMINENT ATTACK THAT HE WAS

WORKING ACTIVELY, WAS DISRUPTED.

>> IS THERE ANY IMMINENT THREAT

TO THE U.S. HOMELAND?

SPEAK OF THESE WERE THREATS THAT

WERE LOCATED IN THE REGION.

>> Tucker: THREATS IN THE

REGION.

IF YOU DON'T LIVE IN WASHINGTON

COME HERE IS THE TRANSLATION

THAT WOULD BE IN HOSTILE

MIDDLE EASTERN COUNTRIES.

PLACES WHERE AMERICAN TROOPS

WOULD NEVER BE IN THE FIRST

PLACE IF NOT FOR THE INSISTENT

DEMANDS OF JOHN BOLTON.

NO ONE IN WASHINGTON IS IN THE

MOOD FOR BIG PICTURE QUESTIONS

RIGHT NOW.

QUESTIONS LIKE THE OBVIOUS ONE

LIKE IRAN IS THE GREATEST FRAUD

THREAT WE FACE OR WHO IS

BENEFITING FROM THIS AND WHY ARE

WE CONTINUING TO THE IGNORE THE

DECLINE OF OUR OWN COUNTRY?

BY THE WAY, IF WERE STILL IN

AFGHANISTAN 19 YEARS LATER WHAT

MAKES US THINK IS A QUICK WAY

OUT OF IRAN?

NOBODY IS THINKING LIKE THAT

RIGHT NOW.

INSTEAD, CHEST BEATERS LIKE

SENATOR BEN TAFF OF NEBRASKA ARE

MAKING THE USUAL WARLIKE NOISES

LIKE THEY USUALLY MAKE.

THIS IS VERY SIMPLE, HE WROTE IN

A STATEMENT LAST NIGHT, GENERAL

SOLO MONEY IS DEAD BECAUSE HE

WAS AN EVIL BASARD

WHO KILLED AMERICANS.

DOES THAT MAKE KILLING HIM

SIMPLE?

IT IS NOT.

NOTHING ABOUT LIFE AND CERTAINLY

NOT KILLING IT'S EVER VERY

SIMPLE AND ANY POLITICIAN WHO IS

OTHERWISE IS DUMB OR IS LYING.

YES, SOLEIMANI WAS LINKED TO THE

DEPTHS OF AMERICANS COME IN THE

NOBODY MOURNS HIS PASSING.

BUT MEXICO AND CHINA ARE ALSO

LINKED TO AMERICANS DYING.

NOT THAT ANYONE IN POWER CARES.

DOES THAT MEAN WE GET THE BOMB

THEM?

CAN WE START ASSASSINATING

GENERALS AND THE PEOPLE'S

LIBERATION ARMY?

MAYBE.

MAYBE HE WILL CALL FOR THAT TOO.

IS A VERY TOUGH CHARACTER.

BEFORE WE ENTER A SINGLE AND THE

WAR, THERE'S A CRITERIA THAT

OUGHT TO BE MET.

OUR LEADERS SHOULD EXPLAIN TO US

HOW THAT CONFLICT WILL MAKE THE

UNITED STATES RICHER AND MORE

SECURE.

THERE'S AN AWFUL LOT OF BAD

PEOPLE IN THIS WORLD, WE CAN'T

KILL THEM ALL.

IT'S NOT OUR JOB.

INSTEAD, OUR GOVERNMENT EXISTS

TO DEFEND AND PROMOTE THE

INTEREST OF AMERICAN CITIZENS.

THAT'S WHY WE HAVE A GOVERNMENT.

HAS THE KILLING OF SOLEIMANI

DONE THAT?

YOU MAY BE.

NOBODY IN WASHINGTON IT'S

EXPLAINED HOW.

INSTEAD THEY ARE TELLING US WHAT

AN AWFUL PERSON HE WAS.

HE CLEARLY WAS.

THAT'S IRRELEVANT IT'S PRETTY

CLEAR THAT THINGS WILL START TO

MOVE IN THE WRONG DIRECTION

PRETTY QUICKLY.

WERE PRAYING THEY DON'T, BUT

THEY COULD.

WE SAW QUITE A NUMBER OF WARS IN

THE MIDDLE EAST ACROSS THE

DECADES.

WE'VE MADE IT IN AN OCCUPIED

AFGHANISTAN.

WE TOPPLED MUAMMAR QADDAFI IN

LIBYA.

WE FOUGHT ISIS IN SYRIA AND

STUCK AROUND.

WE ARE STILL THERE.

WE ARE SPECIAL FORCES HAVE BEEN

FIGHTING IN YEMEN, PAKISTAN, WHO

KNOWS WHERE ELSE.

IN EVERY SINGLE PLACE, EACH OF

THESE CONFLICTS HAS TURNED OUT

TO BE LONGER AND BLOODIER AND

MORE EXPENSIVE THAN WE WERE

PROMISED IN THE FIRST PLACE.

OFTEN THE BENEFITS HAVE BEEN

NONE EXISTED.

A LOT OF LECTURES ABOUT HOW THE

PEOPLE WE ARE KILLING DESERVE TO

DIE.

I HOPE THAT MAKES YOU FEEL

BETTER.

WE DO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE THINK

ABOUT ALL OF THIS?

JUST FIVE MONTHS AGO, AFTER

MONTHS OF SUPPOSEDLY IRANIAN

PROVOCATION, AMERICANS DIDN'T

SEEM TO VIEW IRAN AS A MAJOR

CONCERN.

NOT EVEN CLOSE.

IN A GALLOP POLL TAKEN LAST

AUGUST, JUST 18% OF AMERICANS

SAY THEY BACKED MILITARY FORCE

TO SHUT DOWN IRAN'S NUCLEAR

PROGRAM.

70% THEY PREFER DIPLOMACY AND

ECONOMIC SANCTIONS ALONE.

SO IN A DEMOCRACY YOU WOULD

THINK THIS WOULD MATTER.

A BODY, AS IS SO OFTEN THE CASE,

THE PREFERENCES OF ACTUAL

AMERICANS DON'T ENTER THE

EQUATION AT ALL.

THEY ARE IMMATERIAL.

IN 2016 DONALD TRUMP RAN ON A

PROMISE OF FEWER FOREIGN

ADVENTURES.

HE VOWED INSTEAD TO FOCUS ON OUR

PROBLEMS HERE AT HOME, WHICH ARE

GROWING.

AGAINST THE ODDS COME HE WON

THAT ELECTION, PROBABLY BECAUSE

OF THAT PROMISE.

BUT EVER SINCE, WASHINGTON,

INCLUDING SOME ARE ON THE

PRESIDENT, HAVE BEEN COMMITTED

TO IGNORING THE RESULT OF THAT

ELECTION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS.