Tucker: Trump Staring At The Sun 'Most Impressive Thing Any President Has Done'

Life imitated satire on Monday night when Fox News host Tucker Carlson offered effusive praise for President Donald Trump’s ability to stare at the sun during the eclipse without protective lenses.

“In a move that is not a complete surprise, he looked at the sun without any glasses,” Carlson gushed. “Perhaps the most impressive thing any president has ever done.”

Carlson was joking, it turned out. His comments, he said in a statement on Tuesday, were “a test to see if liberals are really as slow and humorless as people claim. Turns out they are.”

Still, given Carlson’s history of praising Trump, the humor was a little tough to spot.

Indeed, before his show even aired, humor writer Jason O. Gilbert tweeted a mock screencap showing Carlson praising Trump for going blind while looking at the eclipse:

When Carlson made the comments, Gilbert tweeted:

Others were similarly confused where the satire ended and reality began:

Others clearly saw it as a joke:

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

Clarification: The Tuesday statement from Fox News was from Carlson, not a spokesperson as previously stated.

Also on HuffPost

The Moon is seen as it starts passing in front of the Sun during the solar eclipse August 21, 2017 from Ross Lake, North Cascades National Park, Washington.
The Moon is seen as it starts passing in front of the Sun during the solar eclipse August 21, 2017 from Ross Lake, North Cascades National Park, Washington.
A cheerleader uses solar viewing glasses before welcoming guests to the football stadium to watch the total solar eclipse at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. 
A cheerleader uses solar viewing glasses before welcoming guests to the football stadium to watch the total solar eclipse at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. 
A news photographer adjusts his telephoto lens equipped with a filter in front of the U.S. Capitol on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017, in preparation for today's solar eclipse. 
A news photographer adjusts his telephoto lens equipped with a filter in front of the U.S. Capitol on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017, in preparation for today's solar eclipse. 
A composite image, made from seven frames, shows the International Space Station, with a crew of six onboard, as it transits the Sun at roughly five miles per second during the solar eclipse. 
A composite image, made from seven frames, shows the International Space Station, with a crew of six onboard, as it transits the Sun at roughly five miles per second during the solar eclipse. 
A man looks through his solar viewing glasses in New York City. 
A man looks through his solar viewing glasses in New York City. 
Depoe Bay, Oregon
Depoe Bay, Oregon
Ross Lake, North Cascades National Park, Washington.
Ross Lake, North Cascades National Park, Washington.
Madras, Oregon. 
Madras, Oregon. 
People watch the Solar Eclipse in Depoe Bay, Oregon. 
People watch the Solar Eclipse in Depoe Bay, Oregon. 
The 'diamond ring effect' is seen during a total solar is seen from the Lowell Observatory Solar Eclipse Experience in Madras, Oregon. 
The 'diamond ring effect' is seen during a total solar is seen from the Lowell Observatory Solar Eclipse Experience in Madras, Oregon. 
Depoe Bay, Oregon
Depoe Bay, Oregon
A total solar eclipse is seen from the Lowell Observatory Solar Eclipse Experience in Madras, Oregon. 
A total solar eclipse is seen from the Lowell Observatory Solar Eclipse Experience in Madras, Oregon. 
Totality in Depoe Bay, Oregon. 
Totality in Depoe Bay, Oregon. 
A Mexican boy looks through a telescope at the beginning of the solar eclipse, at the esplanade of the Museum of Natural History in Mexico City. 
A Mexican boy looks through a telescope at the beginning of the solar eclipse, at the esplanade of the Museum of Natural History in Mexico City. 
Mexico City, Mexico. 
Mexico City, Mexico. 
The "Bailey's Beads" effect is seen as the moon makes its final move over the sun over Madras, Oregon. 
The "Bailey's Beads" effect is seen as the moon makes its final move over the sun over Madras, Oregon. 
Members of the media watch the solar eclipse at the White House. 
Members of the media watch the solar eclipse at the White House. 
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, left, and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross watch from the White House. 
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, left, and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross watch from the White House. 
President Donald Trump watches from the Truman Balcony. 
President Donald Trump watches from the Truman Balcony. 
The sun is is in full eclipse over Grand Teton National Park outside Jackson, Wyoming. 
The sun is is in full eclipse over Grand Teton National Park outside Jackson, Wyoming. 
In-camera multiple exposure of the solar eclipse as seen in Salem, Oregon. 
In-camera multiple exposure of the solar eclipse as seen in Salem, Oregon. 
Charleston, South Carolina. 
Charleston, South Carolina. 
Alliance, Nebraska.
Alliance, Nebraska.
A man takes a look at the solar eclipse at Liberty State Island in New York. 
A man takes a look at the solar eclipse at Liberty State Island in New York. 
Enthusiasts Tanner Person and Josh Blink, both from Vacaville, California,  atop Carroll Rim Trail at Painted Hills, a unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, near Mitchell, Oregon. 
Enthusiasts Tanner Person and Josh Blink, both from Vacaville, California,  atop Carroll Rim Trail at Painted Hills, a unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, near Mitchell, Oregon. 

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.