Even Tucker Carlson says Trump’s ‘fraud’ claims won’t change the result of the election

Fox News host Tucker Carlson has finally conceded that Donald Trump's attempts to overturn the results of the presidential election will all but certainly be fruitless.  

Mr Carlson is the latest high profile Republican to insinuate that the presidential election is over, though he still hedged his bets and talked around the fact that Mr Trump lost.  

"At this stage, the fraud that we can confirm does not seem to be enough to alter the election result. We should be honest and tell you that. Of course, that could change," he said.  

Despite admitting that the election swinging back into Mr Trump's favour is extremely unlikely, Mr Carlson's foray into reality ended there. He immediately went back to doubling down on the president's baseless claims of widespread voter fraud.  

"But changing the election results is not the whole point. The real point is that fraud took place, and that should horrify us. If you want people to believe that our system is real, that our system is worth say joining the military and dying to protect, then you've got to get to the bottom of what just happened and you've got to do it as quickly and responsibly as you can," Mr Carlson said. "You can't have fraud in an election because then no one will believe in elections and then things fall apart."

Follow election coverage live

He continued by claiming that investigations into alleged fraudulent activity have to happen in order for the American public to believe in the electoral system. He did not note that the main reason Republicans are questioning it is because Mr Trump spent months undermining the legitimacy of the US's electoral process.  

"The point isn't that we need to keep investigating until Donald Trump wins, that is not the point. The point is we need to find out what happened so that the rest of us believe the system is real. And to make that happen, Congress ought to investigate every meaningful claim of illegal voting," Mr Carlson said. "Every legitimate claim that is raised must be investigated."

Mr Carlson's segment was the latest example of a Fox News personality attempting to assuage the bruised ego of the president while trying to guide him toward a dignified exit from office.  

Last week, Laura Ingraham - a Fox News host and unabashed ally of the president - delivered a monologue that appeared to be directed solely and specifically to Mr Trump.  

“Losing, especially when you believe the process wasn’t fair, it’s a gut punch. And I’m not conceding anything tonight, by the way, but losing, if that’s what happens, it’s awful. But President Trump’s legacy will only become more significant if he focuses on moving the country forward,” Ms Ingraham said. And then, the love and respect his supporters feel for him, it's only gonna grow stronger. And his legacy, more historically significant."

She then proceeded to call Mr Trump a "kingmaker" and explain how his influence would set the Republican agenda for decades to come.  

The Fox News hosts' not-so-subtle shepherding may have fallen on deaf ears; Mr Trump has still refused to acknowledged the election results.  

Those around him - like Vice President Mike Pence and First Lady Melania Trump - have rejected meetings with the incoming administration.  

Mr Trump went so far as to fire Mike Esper, the Secretary of Defense, reportedly because he was caught looking for a new job.