Category Archives: Donald Trump

Former President Donald Trump responded to rumors that he would consider selecting his daughter Ivanka as a potential running mate, confirming he would not do so.

In a TV interview with Indian news outlet NDTV earlier this week, the former president expressed surprise at rumors that he was considering running alongside his daughter should he launch a second reelection bid in 2024.

Ivanka? My daughter? Never thought of that one, he said. Well, thats an interesting idea.

ONE OF TRUMPS LONGTIME ALLIES NOW SEEKING TO BOOST OTHER 2024 CONTENDERS

Donald Trump went on to laud his daughter for her accomplishments, calling her a very capable person.

Would you consider it? NDTV journalist Sreenivasan Jain asked.

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No, I wouldnt, he replied. Not my daughter.

Trump has not yet announced his intent to run for president in 2024, although the former commander in chief has teased the idea in several speeches and rallies over the last few months. Trump remains popular in the Republican Party, although recent polling from different groups shows those margins may be tightening as other potential contenders consider throwing their hats in the ring.

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All in the family? Donald Trump responds to rumor he would pick Ivanka as vice president - Washington Examiner

Arnold Schwarzenegger has not only proved himself as an ace bodybuilder but also as an able administrator. Having presided as the chair of the 38th Governor of California, Arnolds involvement with politics is not new. Being selected as the governor, he brought in many crucial policy changes.Having different ideologies, Arnold and the ex-US President hold contradicting viewpoints. Arnold never shied away from expressing his disagreement with Trump. This time Arnolds ex-wife Maria spoke up, but not with Trumps disapproval!

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On the eve of Presidents Day weekend, Maria took up the pen to express her views. Drawing a parallel between the foundation that the forefathers have built and the President overseeing it, Maria praises Trump, but for some different reasons!

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Arnold Schwarzeneggers Son Joseph Baena to Appear on Dancing With the Stars,Along With Selma Blair, and Other High-Profile Celebrities

2 days ago

Maria added further that Trump made her children take more interest in civics and the government. Seeing a positive change, she said that the children have become more aware; they engage in talks, check the news, and are even aware of the names of the people in the room.

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Maria has showered praises on Trump and credited him for making the youth more active in the democracy. However, Arnold came down heavily on Trump during the Capitol Hill riots. In strong reprimanding words, Arnold posted a video message.

Speaking out to the public, The Terminator star appeals to the public to come forward together. Citing his life example, he said, My father and our neighbors were misled also with lies, and I know where such lies lead. Visibly disturbed by the events, Arnold held up the Trump administration accountable for their failure. Further, in the video, Arnold called the then U.S President a failed leader.

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Watch This Story: Revenge takers Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny Devito pulled off some serious pranks on each other.

He continued by saying that because of the mismanagement, He will go down in history as the worst President ever.

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Arnold Schwarzeneggers Ex-Wife Maria Shriver Once Credited Donald Trump for Bringing a Huge Change in Their Kids: I as a Parent Wasnt Really...

Donald Trump threatened Fox News on Thursday, and it wasnt with a good time.

The former president announced on his reportedly financially challengedTruth Social platform that he is considering suing the news network for false advertising after an insulting ad created byThe Lincoln Projectaired on Fox News in one local market where Trump owns a golf course. The ad was not bought through Fox News and did not air nationally.

The ad is titled Sucker, and it basically explains to MAGA Republicans why they are suckers for believing basically anything Trump tells them:

Dear MAGA, we have some bad news. No, not that he lost. Not that your little coup attempt failed and its planners and the attackers are going to jail. No. The really bad news is why Trump told you he lost. Why he set it up way before the 2020 election. It wasnt voter fraud but it was fraud.

Trump told you the election was stolen ripped you off, to sucker you, to take your hard-earned money and shovel it into his pockets. He spent it on himself not to take back the White House.

It was the biggest scam in political history. Every dollar you sent him paid to keep his shady business empire and lavish lifestyle going. It was a sucker game all along. And you know who the sucker is? You.

The ad copy may address MAGA Republicans, but The Lincoln Project intentionally targets Trump, purchasing local ad time on Fox News in Bedminster, New Jersey, where the former president spends the warmer winter months, according to Mediaite.

The commercial was designed specifically to piss off Trump, and it apparently succeeded based on the rant he unleashed Wednesday morning on Truth Social:

The Perverts and Lowlifes of the Lincoln Project are back on, where else, Fox News. I thought they ran away to the asylum after their last catastrophic campaign, with charges made against them that were big time sleaze, and me getting many millions more votes in 2020 than I got in 2016. The Paul Ryun run Fox only has high standards for Trump ads, but not for anyone else. The Perverts should not be allowed to false advertise, and Fox News should not allow it to happen. See you all in Court!!!

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Donald Trump threatened to sue Fox News for broadcasting an ad that was critical of him. (Photo: Truth Social)

Donald Trump threatened to sue Fox News for broadcasting an ad that was critical of him. (Photo: Truth Social)

It should be noted that Trump notoriously threatens lawsuits but rarely files them probably because the discovery process could force him to answer embarrassing questions under oath.

That and the First Amendment protections of political speech are probably why Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson, a former Republican strategist, didnt seem too worried about the threat.

In 2020, The Lincoln Project took up a long-term free lease in Trumps brain. His threat to sue the Lincoln Project today is like Trump himself; impotent, flabby, and pathetic, he told Mediaite.

Wilson said he was delighted by the chance of a lawsuit and released a Twitter video in which he bluntly told Trump to go for it.

Go for it. Go for it, bitch. Come at me. I cant wait, he taunted. Doit. Do it. I double dog dare you.

Looks like Twitter users appreciated the ad more than Trump.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

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Donald Trump Threatens To Sue Fox News Over Ad That Calls His Supporters 'Suckers' - Yahoo News

If there was a list of celebrities who helped WWE the most in terms of ratings and financial help, Donald Trump would certainly find himself around the very top. The former President of the United States is a great friend of Vince McMahon. This not only helped McMahon grow his company from the small circle of wrestling fans, but also to the mainstream audience.

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His relations with Vince McMahon and WWE are not to be understated either. Over the years, Trump has appeared on many Raw and SmackDown shows. But his greatest appearances were at multiple WrestleMania shows. Interestingly, by making these appearances, Trump had an ulterior motive as well.

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While talking about the segment between Jesse Ventura and Donald Trump at WrestleMania 20, the host asked Bruce Prichard about Trump in WWE. Prichard said, Whenever we were in a nice location, Donald would come to live events and he would come to WrestleMania. So Donald was a friend. Especially in New York.

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The Rally of Donald Trump: WWE Legend Once Revealed How the 45th President ofthe USA Indirectly Caused Him Trouble

about 23 hours ago

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He also opened up about the way that Trump helped WWE during its darkest times and how Trump made most of his investment in Vince McMahons business. Prichard continued, He was a big deal, and it was always nice to see him and nice to do with him. He enjoyed it, he got the business, and loved any opportunity to promote himself. So I never had a problem with the guy.

Just to count a few ways that Trump helped WWE, there was the Battle of Billionaires. The event saw McMahon getting his head shaved at the hands of his friend Trump. The storyline was so bizarre, with Trump and McMahon going against each other. But the time was of Ruthless Aggression and Umaga vs Bobby Lashley at WrestleMania 23 was amazing. And this would become the de facto way that WWE fans remembered Trumps contribution to WWE.

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WATCH THIS STORY: From Slapping Austin Theory to Getting Cozy with Torrie Wilson: Most Memorable Moments of Vince McMahon

But there would be a lot of different ways Trump helped WWE over the years, whether it was holding the WrestleMania 3 & 4 at Trump Plaza or talking about WWE in interviews. Tell us what do you think about Trumps involvement in WWE over the years in the comments below.

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Loved Any Opportunity: Millionaire Wrestling Legend Makes Stunning Revelation About Donald Trump Using WWE to His Advantage - EssentiallySports

A clip showing King Charles III allegedly making an insulting gesture to Donald Trump has reemerged online in the wake of the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

The footage, from December 2019 when Trump was president and the king's royal title was the Prince of Wales, was filmed when Elizabeth hosted a gala for NATO leaders at Buckingham Palace to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the military alliance.

While Trump and then-first lady Melania Trump were talking to the queen, Charles used his middle finger to scratch his nose, which some social media users took to be a subtle dig at the president.

The footage has been shared online again now Charles has ascended to the throne following the death of his mother, who was Britain's longest-reigning monarch, having been on the throne for 70 years.

Once more, social media users interpreted the seemingly innocuous scratch as Charles making an insulting gesture to Trump.

"The new King of England, King Charles III, once flipped off Donald Trump," tweeted Mrs. Betty Bowers, a satirical comedic character played by Deven Green.

"Yay for King Charles III. Charles once flipped off Donald Trump," added Twitter user @BansbachRickie.

In a statement following Queen Elizabeth II's death, Trump said Britain's new head of state will be a "great and wonderful King."

"He dearly loves the United Kingdom and all that it represents to the World. He will prove to be an inspiration to everyone. Queen Elizabeth has been, and will be from above, very proud of King Charles III," Trump said.

In an additional tribune to the late monarch, Trump said the 96-year-old "will always be remembered for her faithfulness to her country and her unwavering devotion to her fellow countrymen and women."

"Melania and I will always cherish our time together with the Queen, and never forget Her Majesty's generous friendship, great wisdom, and wonderful sense of humor. What a grand and beautiful lady she wasthere was nobody like her!"

Charles also paid tribute to his mother in a statement released following her death at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Thursday.

"We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved Mother. I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world," he said.

"During this period of mourning and change, my family and I will be comforted and sustained by our knowledge of the respect and deep affection in which The Queen was so widely held."

While Charles immediately ascended to the throne on Thursday following the death of his mother, it may be many months before his coronation takes place.

Charles' wife, Camilla Parker-Bowles, formerly the Duchess of Cornwall, has now become Queen Consort.

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Video of King Charles Appearing To Flip the Bird at Donald Trump Resurfaces - Newsweek

Donald Trump says his residence in Mar-A-Lago has been abruptly raided by "a large group of FBI agents," characterizing the intrusion as a politically calculated move to stunt the former president's future political ambitions.

Trump posted a statement to his Truth Social platform Monday evening denouncing the raid on his home as "not necessary or appropriate," describing his home as "under siege, raided, and occupied." While the reason for federal law enforcement descending on Trump's estate in Palm Beach, Florida, is yet to become clear, it follows months of speculation that federal prosecutors had turned their attention to the former president for his actions in the effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

"Nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before," Trump said in the statement. "After working and cooperating with the relevant Government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate."

Calling the raid "prosecutorial misconduct" and a "weaponization of the Justice System," Trump said the raid was hatched by "Radical Left Democrats" seeking to prevent him from running for president in 2024. Trump likened his treatment to corruption in "broken, Third-World Countries."

"They even broke into my safe!" said Trump. "What is the difference between this and Watergate, where operatives broke into the Democrat National Committee? Here, in reverse, Democrats broke into the home of the 45th President of the United States."

Trump was referring to the Watergate scandal that led to the undoing of President Richard Nixon. In 1972, a team of men broke into Washington, D.C.'s Watergate complex where the Democratic National Committee had offices. The burglars were acting on the orders of G. Gordon Liddy, an FBI agent who worked on Nixon's re-election committee, to bug DNC telephones.

The arrests of five men led to one of the worst political scandals in U.S. history.

Trump did not offer an official reason for the raid, and the Justice Department has remained tight-lipped about its intentions regarding the former president who continues to hold sway in the Republican Party. But the House January 6 committee has held a series of nationally televised hearings that have cast Trump as attempting to prevent Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election.

William Barr, Trump's former attorney general, said Friday that the allegedly incriminating evidence against his old boss was piling up. During an appearance on CBS News, Barr called recent grand jury subpoenas for high-ranking Trump administration officials "significant."

The National Archives and Records Administration earlier this year sought help from the FBI in retrieving 15 boxes containing classified documents Trump allegedly took to his Florida resort, according to reporting from The Washington Post.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing pertaining to the 2020 presidential election or that he improperly handled documents.

As the 2022 midterm elections near, speculation has grown that Trump will make another run for the White House. Late last month, Trump said on a podcast that it would be "very hard for me not to run, to be honest." Recently, his son, Eric Trump, was spotted carrying a golf bag with the words "Trump 2024."

Newsweek has reached out to the Justice Department for comment.

Update 8/8/22, 8 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information and background.

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Donald Trump Says Mar-a-Lago 'Under Siege, Raided, Occupied' by the FBI

The FBI raided former President Donald Trumps Florida resort and home, Mar-a-Lago, he said Monday night.

These are dark times for our Nation, as my beautiful home, Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents, Trump said in a statement. Nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before.

The circumstances of the raid are unclear, but the Justice Department has been ramping up its investigations into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and Trumps efforts to remain in power after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden.

The New York Times first reported that the search appeared to be related to classified material Trump brought with him to Mar-a-Lago after he left the White House.

The raid is an extreme move against a former president and would require approval from the highest echelons of the Justice Department. The Times added that the FBI would have been required to convince a judge it had probable cause to search the premises.

The FBI is led by Director Christopher Wray, who was nominated by Trump in 2017 after his predecessor, James Comey, was fired.

The Washington Post added that Trump who was not at Mar-a-Lago during the raid Monday morning was not given a heads up about the search.

The saga surrounding the classified documents began earlier this year after the National Archives retrieved 15 boxes of documents Trump took with him to Mar-a-Lago when he left the White House. The agency said in February that those boxes contained classified information and materials subject to the Presidential Records Act, which requires such items be turned over to the federal government.

Prosecutors have also reportedly homed in on Trumps efforts to stay in power through widespread, and false, claims of voter fraud, as well as an effort to install slates of fake electors in battleground states that would circumvent the will of the people. The Washington Post reported last month that prosecutors had asked witnesses before grand juries detailed questions about meetings Trump held after his November, 2020 election loss and what instructions he gave his attorneys regarding the fake electors plan.

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The Department of Justice has also issued subpoenas to senior White House officials in recent weeks, including former White House counsel Pat Cipollone and two top aides to former Vice President Mike Pence.

The Justice Department investigations are separate from the ongoing investigation by the House select committee looking into the Capitol attack. Unlike Congress, Justice Department officials have the power to levy criminal charges against the president or others in his circle.

No former U.S. president has ever been charged with a crime, despite investigations into misbehavior.

Trump, who said his FBI agents had broken into a safe, decried the search warrant in his statement, saying the raid was prosecutorial misconduct that reflects a weaponization of the Justice System.

Such an assault could only take place in broken, Third-World Countries, he said. Sadly, America has now become one of those Countries, corrupt at a level not seen before.

What is the difference between this and Watergate, where operatives broke into the Democrat National Committee? he asked. Here, in reverse, Democrats broke into the home of the 45th President of the United States.

During his tenure, Trump regularly came under fire over his efforts to leverage the Justice Department to do his bidding. Attorney General William Barr resigned in December 2020 after the agency rejected Trumps claims of voter fraud.

Republicans quickly condemned the raid. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) echoed Trumps claims the search reflected a state of weaponized politicization, vowing to investigate the Justice Department and Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Attorney General Garland, preserve your documents and clear you calendar, McCarthy said.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

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FBI Raided Donald Trumps Mar-A-Lago Resort, Former President Says

WASHINGTON The fight between former President Donald J. Trump and the National Archives that burst into the open when F.B.I. agents searched Mr. Trumps Palm Beach estate has no precedent in American presidential history.

It was also a high-risk gamble by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland that the law enforcement operation at Mar-a-Lago, the former presidents sprawling home in Florida, will stand up to accusations that the Justice Department is pursuing a political vendetta against President Bidens opponent in 2020 and a likely rival in 2024.

Mr. Trumps demonization of the F.B.I. and the Justice Department during his four years in office, designed to undermine the legitimacy of the countrys law enforcement institutions even as they pursued charges against him, has made it even more difficult for Mr. Garland to investigate Mr. Trump without a backlash from the former presidents supporters.

The decision to order Mondays search put the Justice Departments credibility on the line months before congressional elections this fall and as the country remains deeply polarized. For Mr. Garland, the pressure to justify the F.B.I.s actions will be intense. And if the search for classified documents does not end up producing significant evidence of a crime, the event could be relegated by history to serve as another example of a move against Mr. Trump that backfired.

Mr. Trump faces risks of his own in rushing to criticize Mr. Garland and the F.B.I., as he did during the search on Monday, when he called the operation an assault that could only take place in broken, Third-World Countries. Mr. Trump no longer has the protections provided by the presidency, and he would be far more vulnerable if he were found to have mishandled highly classified information that threatens the nations national security.

A number of historians said that the search, though extraordinary, seemed appropriate for a president who flagrantly flouted the law, refuses to concede defeat and helped orchestrate an effort to overturn the 2020 election.

In an atmosphere like this, you have to assume that the attorney general did not do this casually, said Michael Beschloss, a veteran presidential historian. And therefore the criminal suspicions we dont know yet exactly what they are they have to be fairly serious.

In Mr. Trumps case, archivists at the National Archives discovered earlier this year that the former president had taken classified documents from the White House after his defeat, leading federal authorities to begin an investigation. They eventually sought a search warrant from a judge to determine what remained in the former presidents custody.

Key details remain secret, including what the F.B.I. was looking for and why the authorities felt the need to conduct a surprise search after months of legal wrangling between the government and lawyers for Mr. Trump.

The search happened as angry voices on the far-right fringe of American politics are talking about another Civil War, and as more mainstream Republicans are threatening retribution if they take power in Congress in the fall. Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the Republican leader in the House, warned Mr. Garland to preserve documents and clear his calendar.

This puts our political culture on a kind of emergency alert mode, said Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian at Rice University. Its like turning over the apple cart of American politics.

Critics of Mr. Trump said it was no surprise that a president who shattered legal and procedural norms while he was in the Oval Office would now find himself at the center of a classified documents dispute.

How Times reporters cover politics. We rely on our journalists to be independent observers. So while Times staff members may vote, they are not allowed to endorse or campaign for candidates or political causes. This includes participating in marches or rallies in support of a movement or giving money to, or raising money for, any political candidate or election cause.

For nearly 35 years, the tug of war over presidential records and who controls them has been a largely bureaucratic one waged in the halls of the National Archives and debated among lawyers in courtrooms.

Former President Richard M. Nixon spent nearly four years after Watergate fighting for control over millions of pages of presidential records and hundreds of hours of the audiotapes that helped force his resignation. Mr. Beschloss said that Nixon initially reached a deal with President Gerald R. Ford that would have given him control over his papers as well as the ability to destroy them. But an act passed by Congress after Nixon left office in August 1974 forced him to take his fight to court. He eventually lost in the Supreme Court, in a 7-to-2 decision.

The dispute led to the passage in 1978 of the Presidential Records Act, which for the first time made it clear that White House records are the property of the federal government, not the president who created them. Since then, presidents from both parties have haggled over how and when the archives may release those documents to the public.

Presidents and their aides have also been subjected to other laws concerning the handling of classified information. Over the years, a handful of top federal officials have been charged with illegally handling classified information.

David H. Petraeus, the Army general who served as C.I.A. director under former President Barack Obama, admitted in 2015 that he provided his highly classified journals to his lover, pleading guilty to one count of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material, a misdemeanor.

Sandy Berger, who was national security adviser for former President Bill Clinton, paid a $50,000 fine after pleading guilty to removing classified documents from the National Archives in 2003 to prepare for his testimony to the 9/11 Commission.

But there has never been a clash between a former president and the government like the one that culminated in Mondays search, said Lee White, the executive director of the National Coalition for History.

Mr. White, who has met frequently over the years with officials at the National Archives, said they usually work hard to resolve disagreements about documents with former presidents and their advisers.

They tend to be deferential to the White House, Mr. White said of the lawyers at the National Archives. You know, these questions come up about presidential records and they are like, Look, our job is to advise the White House. But they are not, by nature, an aggressive group of attorneys.

Mr. Beschloss and Mr. Brinkley both said the search of Mr. Trumps house had the potential to become a flash point in the struggle between those investigating the former presidents actions and the forces who supported Mr. Trumps frantic efforts to stay in office.

But they said there were also risks for Mr. Trump and his allies on Capitol Hill, who on Monday rushed to attack Mr. Garland and the F.B.I. in the hours after the search.

You now have Kevin McCarthy something else weve never seen before in history making ugly threats to an attorney general, obviously trying to intimidate him, Mr. Beschloss said.

Mr. Trumps defenders did not wait to find out what evidence the F.B.I. found or even sought before using the search to ratchet up longstanding grievances that the former president stoked throughout his time in office. Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, quickly distributed a short video on Twitter accusing the Biden administration of acting like the regime of a dictator in a third-world country.

This is what happens in places like Nicaragua, Mr. Rubio said in the video. Where last year every single person that ran against Daniel Ortega for president, every single person that put their name on the ballot, was arrested and is still in jail.

You can try to diminish it, but thats exactly what happened tonight, Mr. Rubio said.

The historians said the events are a test of the resilience of American democracy when it is under assault.

We are in the middle of a neo-civil war in this country, Mr. Brinkley said. This is a starkly unprecedented moment in U.S. history.

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The F.B.I. Search of Trumps Home Has No Precedent. Its a Risky Gamble. - The New York Times

For years, Donald Trump and Fox News were smitten.

The former president would call into the rightwing news channel seemingly whenever he liked. Fox News hosts pumped up every Trump utterance. Trump watched the channel religiously, and in 2019 alone he sent 657 tweets in response to Fox News or Fox Business programs.

Since then, however, things appear to have changed. Trump, as the New York Times has pointed out, has not been interviewed on Fox News for more than 100 days.

A recent Trump speech was largely ignored by the network, and in a sign that Fox News has recognized alternative Republican presidential candidates are available, a Mike Pence address was broadcast live, in its entirety.

With the news channel embroiled in a billion-dollar lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems over its claims the voting machine company tampered with the 2020 election, Trumps continuing lies about election fraud seem to have rattled Rupert Murdoch, the media titan who owns Fox News.

Two of Murdochs newspapers, the New York Post and the Wall Street Journal, published scathing editorials on Trump in July, the former calling the twice-impeached 45th president unworthy to be this countrys chief executive again and the latter branding Trump The President Who Stood Still on January 6.

This week the Washington Post reported that Murdoch has lost his enthusiasm for Trump.

The channel has begun to give Pence and Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, plenty of air-time, including two primetime interviews in the space of five days recently, the New York Times reported. Tom Cotton, the Arkansas senator who is also said to be jockeying for a 2024 presidential run, has also been a regular interviewee.

But while the apparent bouncing of Trump from Fox News has been enthusiastically covered by media reporters, there are plenty of signs the channel isnt ready to let its paramour go just yet.

A recent study by Media Matters for America, a media watchdog, found that Fox News continues to discuss Trump far, far more than any of his perceived rivals for the 2024 nomination specifically, Trump was mentioned on Fox News 8,556 times through January to July, while DeSantis and Pence received 1,083 and 589 mentions respectively.

Angelo Carusone, Media Matters president and chief executive, said those findings suggest there has not been a souring. He said there may have been a slight change in tone, and that Trump may not have the same stranglehold he once had on Fox News the days when the channel was seen to be broadcasting to an audience of one are probably over but that the coverage is still overwhelmingly positive.

You were allowed to attack Donald Trump during the primaries in 2015 and 2016 on Fox News. That doesnt happen now, at all, ever, Carusone said.

For his part, Trump has recently expressed his displeasure at Fox News output. The 76-year-old, who is known to be emotional, attacked Fox & Friends in July, after its host Steve Doocy suggested a straw poll of potential 2024 candidates that showed Trump with 79% of the vote be taken with a pinch of salt.

Doocy hardly went off on Trump the host just pointed to other, more scientific, polls that showed Trump lacking 79% support. But it was enough to cause upset.

Fox & Friends just really botched my poll numbers, no doubt on purpose. That show has been terrible gone to the dark side, Trump posted on Truth Social, his ailing rightwing social media platform.

The Dominion lawsuit could be a reason for Trumps absence. The company is suing Fox News for $1.6bn, accusing its owner, Fox Corp, and the Murdochs specifically, of allowing Fox News to amplify Trumps false claims that the voting company had rigged the election for Joe Biden.

In a statement, the news channel said: We are confident we will prevail as freedom of the press is foundational to our democracy and must be protected, in addition to the damages claims being outrageous, unsupported and not rooted in sound financial analysis, serving as nothing more than a flagrant attempt to deter our journalists from doing their jobs.

But with the lawsuit ongoing, could be a wise strategy not to allow Trump to repeat those precise claims on Fox News during a live interview.

Asked about Fox News relationship with Trump, a spokesperson said: The debate among the liberal media on this topic is the very reason Fox News exists and is the most watched cable news channel in the country with more viewers of every political persuasion than any other network.

Still, Carusone believes any cooling on the part of Fox News towards Trump is likely to be temporary.

The channels hosts are still engaging in misty-eyed segments where they talk about how Trump would handle issues ranging from inflation to China to the border crisis a Fox News staple. And Trumps supposed achievements while in office are still championed.

Theyre still fetishizing and fantasizing, its just that theres no longer an audience of one, Carusone said.

There are other people in the audience that they care about.

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Has the love affair between Trump and Fox News gone sour? - The Guardian US

South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker went viral during the pandemic thanks to their surprise deepfake video, Sassy Justice, which has earned over 2 million views on YouTube since its October 2020 debut. The 14-minute short finds a deepfake Donald Trump, voiced by Peter Serafinowicz, reporting news out of Cheyenne, Wyoming under the eponymous moniker. The project was the first bit of content to come out of Deep Voodoo, Stone and Parkers deepfake production studio.

Stone and Parker said at the time that Sassy Justice came about because we just wanted to make fun of [deepfakes] because it makes it less scary, but it turns out the project had its roots in a full-length Donald Trump deepfake movie that Parker and Stone were working on and then scrapped because of the pandemic. The duo revealed the projects existence in a new interview with the Los Angeles Times.

Not a lot of people know that we were a day away from starting production on the first feature movie we had done since Team America: World Police,' Parker said. We were going to start shooting on the day that the pandemic shut everything down. It was months and months of getting ready for that movie, to just being like, Nope, its over. I went to the office to start packing up my things because I was just kind of in shock.

Stone said the deepfake movie is sort of on hold. Why? It was very timely and the timeliness of it has passed, Parker added. Wed have to majorly rethink it to do it now.

Stone and Parker founded Deep Voodoo because of the movie they planned to make. It was going to be Deep Fake: The Movie,' Parker said. It was about this guy who looked exactly like Trump because we deep fake Trumps face onto him. And it was this whole funny thing because, of course, it ends up with Trump just naked and getting run through the wringer and everything, and thats why it was so funny and so timely.

Serafinowicz was going to voice the Trump deepfake, just as he did in Sassy Justice. Stone added, Even though the script was sort of timely, we ended up keeping the deep fake part of the studio going.

Deep Voodoo ended up working on Sassy Justice instead once the feature-length deepfake project fell through because of the pandemic. The studio would later join forces with Kendrick Lamar for his The Heart Part 5 video, which went viral for using deepfake technology to put the faces of Will Smith and more on Lamars body. The video, which debuted May 8, has earned over 38 million views on YouTube.

As for the scrapped deepfake movie, will it ever end up being made? I dont know, [Trump] could be running again, Stone said, noting a timely window could end up opening for the project to be made.

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South Park Creators Developed an Entire Deepfake Donald Trump Movie That Never Got Made: Its Sort of On Hold - Variety