June 18, 2019

Are Trump's fans finally getting tired of him? Ratings for ABC's '30 hours' show were, shall we say, disappointing to those who think every appearance of Dear Leader must have the "best ever" ratings.

Hannity decided to spin the numbers by blaming George Stephanopolous. Hannity claimed that his phone interview with Trump got higher ratings than the ABC special:

SEAN HANNITY: To be on a network and get your ass kicked and I only did a phone interview––by little ol’ Sean Hannity––he needs to just pack it up. Because that is humiliating for him.

But Trump wants to be on network TV. He wants ratings to be spectacular no matter the host or channel. And the appearance of "Trump fatigue" from any US audience spells trouble inside the White House and out. Vanity Fair:

It’s a potentially dangerous warning sign for Trump, as his reelection campaign kicks into high gear with an official launch this week. As a candidate in 2016, Trump took a reality-television approach to capture media attention, proving that all news could be good news, with a proper amount of shamelessness. According to an analysis by SMG Delta, a firm that tracks television advertising, Trump ultimately earned nearly $2 billion in free media coverage during the Republican primary alone. Americans, either entranced or horrified, couldn’t rip their eyes away. Now, however one cannot help but get the sense that he is yelling into a void filled with MAGA voters and not much else.

One only has to recall Trump's freak out over crowd size after his inauguration, and his firing of his own pollsters this week, to get a sense of just how angry the naked emperor will be.

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