When George W. Bush prepared to send troops into Iraq, there weren't a lot of questions about what TV networks or talk radio hosts were influencing his decisions. When Barack Obama contemplated military action in Libya, Syria, and other countries, there weren't constant stories about what MSNBC hosts were advising him to do.
But as the US and Iran exchange military blows against each other in Iraq, it's not only possible, but perhaps likely, that what President Trump sees on Fox News is shaping his views and guiding his decisions. Before signing off for the night, Brian Stelter actually texted me, "I just set my alarm clock for 5am ET because 'Fox & Friends,' the president's daily televised briefing, is starting an hour earlier than usual on Wednesday."
The situation is further compounded, of course, by the fact that the White House press secretary has stopped holding formal press briefings. Instead, to get a sense of what the President might be thinking, Americans are left with watching Sean Hannity's show.
On Tuesday night, Lindsey Graham and Kevin McCarthy both appeared on his Fox show, touting that they had spoken to Trump earlier. Graham said Iran's fate was in its hands, warning, "You continue this crap you're going to wake up one day out of the oil business." And McCarthy praised Trump's judgement, telling Hannity, "He'll access the damage and he'll respond accordingly."
Meanwhile, Hannity himself continued to talk about potentially striking three of Iran's oil refineries, something he also mentioned Monday night. (Is someone briefing him?) He added, “[Iran's] hostility will now be met with the full force of the greatest, most advanced, most sophisticated military this world has ever seen."
As NY Mag's Olivia Nuzzi noted on Twitter, "It is actually insane that the American people have to tune into a partisan cable news channel to get anything close to a briefing on the president’s thinking as the nation fumbles toward a war with Iran." THR's Jeremy Barr bluntly stated it like this: "As usual, gotta watch Hannity to find out about war."
The voice absent from Hannity's show
Geraldo Rivera tweeted Tuesday evening, saying he would be appearing on Hannity's show urging Trump to show "restraint." But soon after, Rivera followed up with another tweet: "Never mind Hannity just canceled me." Instead, Hannity stacked his line up with voices like Oliver North, Pete Hegseth, and Dan Bongino...
Source Reliable Sources CNN
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