Donald Trump had already made it clear that Fox News would face his criticism if Republicans failed to perform well in the midterm elections, as reported by The Guardian. As results came in, the president followed through, repeatedly attacking the network on Truth Social before blaming it for his party’s losses in Congress.
Trump’s complaints started before many races had even been called. He criticized Fox for featuring Democratic commentator Jessica Tarlov, described its polling as “always the worst,” and took aim at the network’s recent ratings trends. He also accused the channel of being “AGAINST” him. Just before midnight, he went further, writing that “FoxNews bears responsibility for these losses by constantly and consistently putting on the Dumocrat opposition, and worse.”
The president then took his complaints directly to the network. Around midnight, he called into Fox’s election coverage and told its employees to find better pollsters, describing the network’s polling team as “the worst.” Anchor Bret Baier gently challenged that assessment, pointing out that the election results were actually close to what Fox’s polls had predicted.
The commentators seemed to be neutral
Despite Trump’s repeated attacks, the network’s election coverage took a different approach to explaining the Republican losses. During more than six and a half hours of coverage reviewed by the outlet, commentators generally avoided blaming the president directly or suggesting that the Republican Party should distance itself from him.
Instead, several hosts focused on voters’ expectations and the historical tendency for a president’s party to struggle in midterm elections. Jesse Watters, for instance, described voters as “impatient” and said they wanted “instant gratification.” Other commentators suggested Democrats could misinterpret their victories as a mandate, potentially creating problems for the party ahead of the 2028 elections.
The limited criticism directed at Trump largely focused on his administration’s messaging and the decision to launch a war against Iran. Rising gas prices were also mentioned as a possible factor behind voter dissatisfaction. Sean Hannity agreed with Baier that the election results might have been different if Trump had not bombed Iran, while Watters suggested that voters were angry about prices.
Larry Kudlow, a Fox Business Network host who previously served in Trump’s administration, argued that the president had been too successful during his first year but had failed to communicate those achievements effectively. Former White House press secretary Dana Perino similarly said the administration had too many issues competing for attention, making it difficult to establish a clear message.
Other commentators were more openly supportive. Will Cain said the positives of Trump’s presidency outweighed the negatives, while Laura Ingraham acknowledged that the election was a referendum on the president but described his policies as “phenomenal for the country.”
Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s most recent press secretary, shifted responsibility toward the media, arguing that voters had listened to what she called the “lying media.” Trump himself also rejected the idea that the results reflected poorly on him. He said he did not view the outcome as a personal setback and blamed the Republican candidates who lost, repeating his belief that the results would have been different if he had appeared on the ballot.
Published: Nov 4, 2026 02:45 pm