President Donald Trump took a swing at “Special Report” host Bret Baier and Fox News on Tuesday over a town hall event the network held the night prior for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), a self-described “democratic socialist” and currently the leading contender for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination.
President Trump expressed his displeasure with the “smiley” Baier’s alleged soft questioning of Sanders and the network’s overall bent as of late, citing the recent hiring of disgraced CNN contributor and Democratic operative Donna Brazile.
“So weird to watch Crazy Bernie on [Fox News]. Not surprisingly, [Bret Baier] and the ‘audience’ was so smiley and nice,” said Trump via Twitter. “Very strange, and now we have [Donna Brazile]?”
Baier shot back on Twitter mere hours later. “Thanks for watching Mr. President – we’d love to have you on a town hall soon — or even an interview on [“Special Report”] — it’s been awhile,” he posted. “We cover all sides.”
Baier, alongside “The Story” host Martha MacCallum, moderated the town hall event for Sen. Sanders. The event’s audience constituted a diverse crowd, comprised of many fans of Sanders.
In one of the more noteworthy exchanges of the night, Baier asked Sanders, a millionaire, why he accepted Trump-era tax breaks while simultaneously railing against such breaks to his base. The senator amazingly scoffed at the idea, as if it would be insane for the socialist to practice what he preaches, and took a predictable swing at Trump.
“Pfft…come on…I am, I paid the taxes that I owe…why don’t you get Donald Trump up here and ask him how much he pays in taxes,” answered the senator, visibly uncomfortable at the questioning.
Ms. Brazile, a controversial figure, was signed to Fox News in March. The former Democratic National Committee chairwoman was exposed for leaking CNN questions during the 2016 election to assist Trump’s opponent, Hillary Clinton. The Daily Wire’s Kassy Dillon has reported:
During the 2016 election, Brazile was widely criticized after emails surfaced proving she shared questions with the Hillary Clinton campaign ahead of a CNN-hosted town hall hosted with opponent Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Brazile lost her job at CNN shortly after, The Daily Wire reported. After initially denying any wrongdoing, Brazile wrote in an essay in TIME that “sending those emails was a mistake I will forever regret.”
And it’s not just Trump who disapproves of Brazile signing on at Fox News. Progressives dragged her, too — though not because she’s been exposed for lying about the Clinton questions, but because the network is too right-wing for them.
“My response is that, if we’ve learned anything from the 2016 election, it is that we can’t have a country where we don’t talk to those who disagree with our political views,” the Democrat said in response. “There’s an audience on Fox News that doesn’t hear enough Democrats. We have to engage that audience and show Americans of every stripe what we stand for rather than retreat into our ‘safe spaces’ where we simply agree with each other.”