Fox News’ Tucker Carlson announced that he is leaving for vacation Wednesday, after his comments about white supremacy being a “hoax” set off a firestorm and garnered the endorsement of David Duke, former leader of the Ku Klux Klan.

Per CNN, Fox News claims that the vacation was planned before the controversy unraveled.

Carlson said Tuesday night on his show that white supremacy is “just like the Russia hoax” and that “it’s a conspiracy theory used to divide the country and keep a hold on power.”

He made the comments just days after a shooter in El Paso killed 22 people, seemingly motivated by his white nationalist beliefs.

His comments earned approval from Duke, one of the most infamously virulent white nationalists.