After a disappointing night for Team Red, two of its most devoted Fox cheerleaders threw major shade at the former TV Watcher-in-Chief.
Host and Trump worshiper Harris Faulkner followed up on Republican Marc Thiessen’s scathing comments about the election results on Tuesday night. Thiessen called them “an absolute disaster for the Republican Party” and said it “needs to do a really deep introspection.” That was an indirect condemnation of Trump.
Faulkner and contributor Jason Chaffetz took a direct jab.
“I'm wondering if that introspection for Republicans includes or does not include President Trump,” Faulkner “asked” Chaffetz.
“I hope so. I think it really needs to,” Chaffetz replied. Then he got to the larger message, which is that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis should be the GOP leader for 2024. Chaffetz’s voice was full of recrimination as he continued: “Even for him, before the votes were closed to start to take shots at Ron DeSantis?”
“Donald Trump’s not gonna like this,” Chaffetz continued, knowing that the MAGA Couch Potato was probably watching. He went on to say that the people he’s spoken with love Trump and his policies, think he’s a big victim of the media and the Department of Justice (not a word about whether he won or lost the 2020 election, though). But “We don’t like all the drama, we like Ron DeSantis,” Chaffetz said he was told.
“I don’t think Republicans want to hear infighting between Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis,” Chaffetz added, “and right now, Donald Trump keeps taking shots at Ron DeSantis. That is not going to play well.”
Faulkner loves Trump so much, she took his side even when he attacked John McCain's war-hero status. But here she said pointedly, “Well, look, only of them picked up 20 points last night.” She then opined that “some” say Trump helped DeSantis by taking shots at him and thus elevating his status. It strongly suggests this kind of talk is what the bosses want.
Chaffetz piled on further. He pointed out that Republicans, like Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who distanced themselves from Trump but not "MAGA doctrine, did “exceptionally well.”
The problem for these folks is that the narcissistic Trumpenstein they helped create is not likely to slink away into a corner and let others have the spotlight, especially not when there’s fundraising money to glom.
And I can assure you that if Trump becomes the 2024 front runner, Fox will fall back in line with him as fast as you can say, “some very fine people on both sides.”
