Every so often, an hour of television showcases President Trump's reliance on "alternative facts" and his supporters' reluctance to tell him the truth.
Fox's "The Five" was that hour of TV yesterday. Trump called into the show and claimed that real polls about his meager approval rating are "fake." He said that liberal co-host Jessica Tarlov, who was absent from the segment, "uses fake numbers. She'll give, 'Well, he's only polling 42%.' That's not right. I'm polling very high, actually."
That was at 5:29 p.m. At 6 p.m., Fox released a new national poll showing Trump's approval rating stands at 41%.
"That's down two points from a month ago and eight points from a year ago," Jacqui Heinrich said on "Special Report."
Of course, many Fox fans trust Trump over Fox's reporters and pollsters. And Trump has a long history of attacking the Fox polling unit and denying statistical reality. When he complained yesterday about real polls — "I hate people that use fake polls because polls are just like bad journalists. You know, bad journalists, they write fake stories, well, fake polls do damage also" — no one on "The Five" interjected.
Too bad Tarlov wasn't there. "Was so bummed to miss the show today!" she wrote on X. "But I definitely would've said he's even inflating his numbers to 42%!"
When Bret Baier asked House Speaker Mike Johnson about the poll's findings, Baier said, "The president doesn't love Fox News polls, but these polls track with others." He showed this graphic
