President Donald Trump on Sunday threatened to report NBC journalist Kristen Welker to the Federal Communications Commission for her reporting on the impact Trump’s endorsement has had on GOP candidates.
In a post to social media, Trump said Welker, the longtime host of NBC’s “Meet the Press," "just stated that Donald Trump has 'mixed results' on his Endorsements of Candidates.” He went on to say the claim stands against “the recent WINS of Darline Graham and Mike Mazzei," referencing candidates in South Carolina and Oklahoma, respectively.
“How can anyone be allowed to say this, working for freely given Public Airwaves?” Trump said. “Because of this purposeful inaccuracy, she will be reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment.”
Trump went on to say that his endorsement is “without question, the strongest Endorsement in the History of Politics. If it were not, I would be the first to admit it.”
In his statement Sunday, the president also accused the “Radical Left News is going out of their way to harass, demean, and libel anything “TRUMP.”’
“The Press is a Disgrace to our Nation, and I hope that Chairman Brendan Carr, and the fine people of his Commission, will take this Threat to our Country very seriously,” Trump concluded.
In a statement to POLITICO, an NBC News spokesperson said, “Kristen is one of the best in the business and we stand by her.”
Welker did not actually speak to the results of the president’s endorsements as she hosted Sunday’s “Meet the Press.” While her interviews with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) discussed the upcoming midterms and candidates they supported, Welker did not ask about the president’s endorsements.
However, in a live shot on NBC's local D.C. affiliate ahead of Sunday’s “Meet the Press,” Welker said Trump will “loom large” over November’s midterms.
“He, of course, has endorsed a slate of candidates in the primaries,” Welker said. “He's had some mixed results, but most recently, his pick of Senator Darline Graham, of course, the sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, was successful in her primary battle, so now she takes on Dr. Annie Andrews in South Carolina."
While Graham did win her primary battle, other notable Trump-endorsed candidates have fallen short in their own bids, including Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.), who lost his reelection bid earlier this month to former news reporter Ryan Elijah, and Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), who lost his primary to former Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner Charlie Hatcher. Trump also backed failed gubernatorial candidates Mike Lindell (Minnesota), Megan Degenfelder (Wyoming) and Randy Feenstra (Iowa).
It is not the first time Trump has railed against Welker. In June, he abruptly ended an interview with her in Wisconsin after she pressed him on unsubstantiated claims of “crooked” elections. He also criticized her last year for questioning then-Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) on a chat leak detailing the Pentagon’s war plans.
Welker is not the only journalist or media company Trump has threatened with FCC reports or lawsuits.
He has recently launched personal attacks at other female journalists, including New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, CNN's Kaitlan Collins and Fox News' Shannon Bream. In a social media post earlier this month, the White House “rapid response” account launched personal insults at CNN reporter Kristen Holmes after she questioned the president during a press conference.
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