Tucker Carlson shows up to pay tribute to legendary Hell’s Angels leader Sonny Barger

Fox News host Tucker Carlson was among the thousands who turned out to pay tribute to Ralph “Sonny” Barger, the longtime president of the Hell’s Angels motorcycle club and an iconic figure from the 1960s counterculture who passed away in June.

A crowd reported to be 7.000 strong gathered at the Stockton 99 Speedway in Stockton, California on Saturday for the funeral service for the 83-year-old Modesto native who succumbed to cancer with many sharing stories of the fallen outlaw, one of them being Carlson who delivered what the Daily Mail described as an “impassioned speech in honor of the fallen societal figure.”

Beginning by telling the crowd that he is from California, Carlson said, “I grew up here, I’m 53 years old so I remember a different state. I almost never come back because it makes me sad, and standing here with all of you reminds me of the state I grew up in. I haven’t smelled cigarette smoke in the state of California in 30 years and I’m just so grateful to smell it..”

“And I’m not joking at all,” he said. “So thank you to those of you who are smoking and persisting, thank you to those of you who are going to the Stockton gun show in two days, God bless. I can’t believe they still exist, I can’t believe that this California still exists and I’m just really happy to see that it does,” he added before he delivered his heartfelt tribute to Barger.

(Video: Daily Mail)

“I never met Sonny Barger but when he died, his letter to his wife and friends was released, and my college roommate who’s also a Harley-Davidson fan sent it to me,” Carlson said to the crowd. “‘We’d always been fans of Sonny Barger, but I didn’t know what his personal views were apart from representing the club.”

“And the letter, if I can just summarize it from memory, was, ‘Always stand tall, stay loyal… remain free, and always value honor,'” he continued. “And I thought to myself, if there is a phrase that sums up more perfectly what I want to be, what I aspire to be, and the kind of man I respect, I can’t think of a phrase that sums it up more perfectly than that,” drawing applause from the crowd.

“And I thought that came from Sonny Barger, the famous outlaw biker that every mom in my neighborhood was scared s**tless of as a child,” he said. “That’s Sonny Barger’s worldview?”

“Why aren’t we hearing that from the people who run the country?” Carlson asked. “Why is it left to Sonny Barger to say, ‘Stand tall, stay loyal, remain free, and always value honor?'”

‘The president of the United States should be saying that – every single morning as he salutes the flag – but only Sonny Barger is saying it,” Carlson said.

“And I thought to myself, I want to pay tribute to the man who spoke those words, and when I was invited to this funeral, I cleared my schedule and I thought, I don’t care how hard it is to get from Maine to Stockton,” he continued. “I’m goin’ and I’m here and I’m honored to be here, thank you for having me and I hope that you continue to represent those views.  Amen,” he said in remarks that were greeted with enthusiasm.

Barger lost his battle with cancer on June 29, and a message from him announcing his death was posted to his Facebook page after he passed.

“If you are reading this message, you’ll know that I’m gone. I’ve asked that this note be posted immediately after my passing,” he wrote. “I’ve lived a long and good life filled with adventure. And I’ve had the privilege to be part of an amazing club.”

(Image: Screengrab/Facebook)

“Although I’ve had a public persona for decades, i’ve mostly enjoyed special time with my club brothers, my family, and close friends,” he wrote. “Please know that I passed peacefully after a brief battle with cancer.

(Video: YouTube/KPIX)

“Even though he was blind in one eye, and he packed his oxygen, well, when his kickstand went up, you better catch up,” a speaker said of Barger at the funeral.

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