Fox News' Chris Wallace isn't buying the spin about Trump's attacks on the 'squad'
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Fox News' Chris Wallace came out swinging on Sunday with some tough questions about President Trump's recent attacks on four Democratic congresswomen.
Wallace on Fox News Sunday interviewed White House senior adviser Stephen Miller following a week of controversy about Trump telling minority congresswomen to "go back" to where they came from, per Mediaite, starting off by showing a video package of the president's "long record" of inflammatory rhetoric and asking Miller flat out, "Why shouldn't someone see all of that as racist?"
The Fox host challenged Miller on Trump's false claims that he quickly shut down a "send her back" chant at his rally last week, pointing out that Trump actually "let it go on for 13 seconds" and he "said nothing" immediately after the rally "that indicated any concern about the chant."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Wallace also objected to the idea of Trump telling the congresswomen they should leave the United States if they're going to criticize it so much, proceeding to play a montage of Trump himself repeatedly criticizing the United States before he was president.
"Why is what those congresswomen have said in general any worse than what you just heard Donald Trump say?" Wallace asked. Miller claimed there's a big difference between comments Trump has made and what the congresswomen have said, which Wallace didn't seem to buy. In fact, the Fox News host came with receipts to show that Trump's claims that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) once called the United States "garbage" is based on a completely out-of-context quote.
"There's no question that he is stoking racial divisions," Wallace ultimately concluded of Trump.
At another point in the show, as Mediaite reports, Wallace pressed Fox News contributor Lisa Boothe about whether Trump's "go back" tweets were "wrong," suggesting that those who say the tweets were politically wise — presumably including those on his own network — are missing the point.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Minnesota's legal system buckles under Trump's ICE surgeIN THE SPOTLIGHT Mass arrests and chaotic administration have pushed Twin Cities courts to the brink as lawyers and judges alike struggle to keep pace with ICE’s activity
-
Big-time money squabbles: the conflict over California’s proposed billionaire taxTalking Points Californians worth more than $1.1 billion would pay a one-time 5% tax
-
‘The West needs people’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump links funding to name on Penn StationSpeed Read Trump “can restart the funding with a snap of his fingers,” a Schumer insider said
-
Trump reclassifies 50,000 federal jobs to ease firingsSpeed Read The rule strips longstanding job protections from federal workers
-
Is the Gaza peace plan destined to fail?Today’s Big Question Since the ceasefire agreement in October, the situation in Gaza is still ‘precarious’, with the path to peace facing ‘many obstacles’
-
Vietnam’s ‘balancing act’ with the US, China and EuropeIn the Spotlight Despite decades of ‘steadily improving relations’, Hanoi is still ‘deeply suspicious’ of the US as it tries to ‘diversify’ its options
-
Trump demands $1B from Harvard, deepening feudSpeed Read Trump has continually gone after the university during his second term
-
Trump’s Kennedy Center closure plan draws ireSpeed Read Trump said he will close the center for two years for ‘renovations’
-
Trump's ‘weaponization czar’ demoted at DOJSpeed Read Ed Martin lost his title as assistant attorney general
-
Gabbard faces questions on vote raid, secret complaintSpeed Read This comes as Trump has pushed Republicans to ‘take over’ voting
