President rang Fox News on Tuesday morning, listing his achievements until the hosts told him: ‘You’ve got to go’
Harriet Alexander, Independent (UK), November 03, 2020
A hoarse and exhausted-sounding Donald Trump rang Fox News on the morning of Election Day to weigh in on the “season” and attack his opponent, describing him as being “not prime time” and complaining that the job has been “mean”.
Asked whether he had loved the job, Mr Trump replied: “Well, it’s been mean. It’s been — you deal with some horrible people, like Shifty Schiff and Crazy Nancy and Crying Chuck Schumer. You deal with some horrible people.”
The president, to the bemusement of the hosts, then moved on to attack Fox News.
“Somebody said what’s the difference between this and four years ago, and I say Fox,” he said.
Brian Kilmeade, one of the hosts, said: “Mr President, we try and show both sides.”
Mr Trump replied: “In the old days you wouldn’t put Sleepy Joe on every time he opens his mouth. You had Democrats on more than you had Republicans. I’m not complaining — I’m just telling people.”
The former reality television star, who has criss-crossed the country in the last few weeks, holding several rallies in multiple states each day, was effusive in his list of his accomplishments — reeling off a long line of his achievements, and leaving the hosts telling him that “White House officials are saying you have to go”.
“Joe Biden is not prime time — and he never was, actually,” said Mr Trump, 74.
“He’s not prime time. He’s been put in an awful position — when he says he’s a proud Democrat running for Senate; he’s done it a couple of times. When he says he’s happy to be in Iowa
“It’s a tough thing for him. Frankly he shouldn’t be in this position.”
Ainsley Earhardt, the Fox and Friends host, tried to bring the president’s lengthy speech to an end.
“This is our last question,” she said.
Her co-host, Steve Doocy, added gently: “You’ve got to go.”
Mr Trump then began speaking about Kamala Harris, Mr Biden’s running mate, warning she would turn the US into a socialist nation.
“She would be a terrible first representative,” he said. “If she became our first woman president it would be a terrible thing for our country, and a terrible thing for women. I look forward to a woman president, but not this one. It will become a socialist country.”
He railed against packing the courts, and the voting row in Pennsylvania.
Doocy interrupted: “Mr President…”
Mr Trump continued: “If you look at the amount of horror that has gone on — Philadelphia, it’s been a disaster. We are putting people on the honour system. But there is no reason to do this. I’d like to find out on the night of November 3.”
Doocy tried again: “Mr President…”
Mr Trump said: “But you want to have a result.”
Doocy finally got a word in: “Mr President, the White House team is telling us you have to go.”
He then asked Mr Trump for his prediction. He said last year he thought 306 in the electoral college.
“And I think we’ll top it.
“We have a headwind on the stock market. If Biden got in — people are starting to think I’m going to win, and there’s a real headwind. Now they are looking at it differently. We’ve made a lot of progress.
“It’s been an honour. And there is a lot of love on both sides. You feel the love — it’s incredible.
“Tucker did an amazing piece, and he figured it out. When Biden goes and has 20, 30 people — it’s not a lot. I’m coming in and we’re having 45,000 people. You’ve got to see the rally we have in Miami. People didn’t want to leave. It’s truly amazing.”
Mr Trump had began by listing his achievements, saying he “had a list” of his proudest moments.
“You look at what we’ve done — Space Force, improving things for the vets. They lived in hell, they just lived in hell.
“The wall is going to be done, we’ve built 400 miles, we’re building 10 miles a week.
“We did Right to Try: if you’re terminally ill you can get a drug and use it and see, instead of going all over the world, and going home or dying.
“We moved the embassy. Everyone wanted to do that; they all wanted to do it, but I did it and got it done. I have a list, you could read it for a day, I’m very proud of it.”
The hosts showed a clip of Bernie Sanders, the senator for Vermont, hosting a Zoom meeting with “The Squad” — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar — in which they discussed how they wanted to continue fighting for Medicare for all.
“I think it’s very disrespectful for Biden,” he said, of their conversation. “If you gave me that, I’d have put it up on the board. Like he said fracking, then no fracking.
“This shows tremendous disrespect for Biden; it shows just what I was saying — it’s a tough group to run. They’ll take the country to a terrible place.”