And now, the Putin factor
Axios’s Jonathan Swan reports that Tucker Carlson was talking to U.S.-based Kremlin intermediaries about setting up an interview with Vladimir Putin shortly before Tucker accused the National Security Agency of monitoring his electronic communications for nefarious purposes — according to “sources familiar with the conversations.” Draw your own conclusions from this:
The NSA’s public statement didn’t directly deny that any Carlson communications had been swept up by the agency.
• Axios submitted a request for comment to the NSA on Wednesday, asking whether the agency would also be willing to categorically deny that the NSA intercepted any of Carlson’s communications in the context of monitoring somebody he was talking to in his efforts to set up an interview with Putin.