Trump says Fox News 'totally forgot who got them where they are'
President Donald Trump lashed out at Fox News on Wednesday, accusing the cable channel of being ungrateful.
“I was on Air Force One flying to the Great State of Texas, where I just landed. It is AMAZING in watching Fox News,” the president tweeted. “How different they are from four years ago. Not even watchable. They totally forgot who got them where they are!”
While Trump frequently appears on the morning show “Fox & Friends” and can count on the conservative-leaning network’s evening lineup to advance his agenda, he’s been known to take exception to Fox’s daytime programming, which aims to be more moderate.
His Wednesday tweet came at lunchtime after he touched down in the Lone Star State — a pandemic hot spot — to raise campaign money in a Republican stronghold where this year’s presidential race appears close.
It wasn’t immediately clear what segment upset the president during his flight, though he often criticizes Fox’s polling, which has consistently showed him trailing Joe Biden in the November election.
In August 2019, Trump blasted the conservative outlet for what he perceived to be a lack of loyalty.
“We have to start looking for a new News Outlet,” he tweeted. “Fox isn’t working for us anymore!”
Fox News veteran Neil Cavuto, who has been with the outlet for more than 24 years, snapped back at the president.
“First of all, Mr. President, we don’t work for you,” Cavuto claimed in a critical follow-up. “I don’t work for you. My job is to cover you, not fawn over you or rip you, just report on you. Call balls and strikes on you. My job, Mr. President, our job here, is to keep the scores, not settle scores.”
Trump has been known to flirt with the upstart right-wing cable channel OANN when he becomes upset with Fox News, though its audience is considerably smaller.
“So, what the hell has happened to Fox News?” he asked his Twitter follower in January. “Only I know!”
He also suggest host Chris Wallace — who grilled the president in a dizzying interview earlier this month — should go to work for more liberal-leaning networks such as CNN or MSNBC.
Trump has blamed Fox News’s supposed demise on the death of its founder, Roger Ailes, who died in May 2017.
“I know better than anyone that my friend Roger Ailes died 3 years ago, just look at what happened to @FoxNews. We all miss Roger!!!”
Ailes, who inspired the film “Bombshell,” left Fox in July 2016 after nearly two dozen women accused him of sexual misconduct.
Trump made that claim again during his July 19 “Fox News Sunday” chat with Wallace.
“I’m not a big fan of Fox, I’ll be honest with you,” he said. “They’ve changed a lot since Roger Ailes.”
As well as being pushed hard on facts about the pandemic and on Biden, his likely November opponent, Trump boasted about passing a cognitive test during his visit with Wallace, but admitted some of the questions “get very hard.”
Fox News’ ratings have been very high throughout the administration. The network boasted Wednesday that this month was its best July yet, with its top shows, “Tucker Carlson Tonight” and “Hannity,” leading the way. Both shows reportedly averaged at least 4 million viewers per night.
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