There have been many reports talking about the demise of Tucker Carlson at Fox. Some think it was about the Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit while others contend that it is the upcoming litigation vs. Smartmatic and Abby Grossman. Could it be, however, that while they may have played a part in the decision, it was the 60 Minutes story on Ray Epps, a former Trump diehard that became the scapegoat of the MAGA and QAnon movements that drove the final nail into Carlson’s coffin.

And actually, the idea isn’t that far fetched.

Fox had already lost the Dominion suit, so, that damage is done. On top of that, the SmartMatic and Abby Grossman litigation is still in the early stages and may never amount to anything. Even if the lawsuits do end up going to court some time down the road, there is plenty of time for Carlson to make the Network more money before that happens. Furthermore, among the crowd that Carlson entertains, those two lawsuits aren’t even really on the list of things they care about.

But the Ray Epps segment on 60 Minutes is different. 60 Minutes is one of the highest rated shows on television, especially news programs. Between 7 and 12 million viewers tune in each week. Unlike a CNN or MSNBC segment, when something is on 60 Minutes, it gets noticed — even by the folks who watch Fox.

Also, 60 Minutes is a credible source. It doesn’t carry the cloud that cable news or other sources carry. It started in 1968 and has been a mainstay in American households ever since.

So, when Ray Epps went on there and laid out how Tucker Carlson led the charge to defame and disparage him — claiming he was a secret FBI agent planted by the government to stir up trouble then makes a credible case that he has never ever been a plant or employee of the FBI, surely, Fox took notice.

Epps says everything Tucker Carlson claimed about him is a lie, and Epps’ people asked for a public apology. But an apology never came. Epps didn’t say it, but it is very possible that he and his family are aiming at another suit against Fox for Carlson’s defamation that destroyed Epps’ life. A life that has him living with his wife in hiding “somewhere in the Rocky Mountains” in an RV.

Fox can’t say that they fired Carlson when they found out about his election lies, and it is still a stretch that they can say they fired him when they found out about what was going on behind the scenes of his show, which is the basis for Grossman’s lawsuit. But they can say they fired Carlson the next day after learning about how Ray Epps’ life has been destroyed by what Carlson said about him.

The sudden and swift move might be an attempt to shield themself from a lawsuit from Epps. Epps will easily be able to show that he is not, nor ever has been an FBI plant or employee. Once he does that, it would be nearly impossible for Fox to weasel out of being found guilty for defaming him if Carlson was still doing his show there. Perhaps the only thing they have is to be able to say they fired Carlson immediately after “learning the truth” about his bogus accusations.

Time will tell …

Check out the full 60 Minutes interview with Ray Epps below: