'Haven't seen that evidence': Laura Ingraham interrupts Donald Trump's rant on widespread fraud in 2020 elections
GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA: During a town hall in Greenville, South Carolina, on February 20, former President Donald Trump was swiftly interrupted by Fox News host Laura Ingraham as he started talking about the 2020 election.
Fox News reported that Trump began discussing his election strategy for 2024, emphasizing the importance of overwhelming the opposition.
Laura Ingraham rejected Trump's claims of rigged elections
Trump stated, "The way you win is by swamping them. And we’re gonna swamp. I’ll tell you what. I did great in the first election. I did much better in the second election, I hate to tell you."
Laura Ingraham promptly interjected, saying, "We have some noteworthy updates from New York, by the way," hinting at an unfavorable poll result for President Joe Biden. "There's a recent New York poll we'll be discussing shortly. But Mr President, Kelly is here in the audience with a question about foreign aid".
Trump continues to assert, without evidence, that the 2020 election was rigged against him.
Following his defeat, Trump, along with various guests and hosts on Fox News, promoted unfounded and at times outlandish conspiracy theories regarding widespread election fraud.
Among these claims was the allegation that voting machines supplied by Dominion Voting Systems were manipulated to ensure Biden's victory. In response, Dominion filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox, resulting in a settlement of $787.5 million in April 2021.
The lawsuit has been a source of discomfort for the network, as many internal communications revealed in court filings shed light on the network's stance.
Internal Fox communications reveal hosts' reluctance to embrace Trump's claims
Correspondence from several Fox hosts and other employees suggested that they did not genuinely believe Trump's false assertions about the election. However, they felt obligated to cater to Fox viewers by disseminating inaccurate information that aligned with their preferences.
"Respecting this audience whether we agree or not is critical," host Sean Hannity conveyed in a text message to a producer in November 2020.
Despite this pressure, Ingraham has repeatedly advised Trump against revisiting the 2020 election. "Please, for the love of God, stop talking about 2020," she implored in July.
Furthermore, Ingraham has swiftly shut down individuals who have made claims about the election. In August, when John Eastman asserted on her show that he "had lots of evidence of fraud," she responded, "I haven't seen that evidence."
The audio and visual cues suggested that Eastman, a lawyer who advised Trump that Vice President Mike Pence could overturn the election, made statements that seemed to be edited out of the pre-taped interview.
