Trump tweets and the TV news stories behind them

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:46 AM

At 7:46 a.m., the author Christopher Bedford appeared on "Fox & Friends" to promote his book, "The Art of the Donald: Lessons from America's Philosopher-in-Chief." At 8:13 a.m., President Trump tweeted this: "Highly respected author, Christopher Bedford, just came out with book, 'The Art of the Donald, Lessons from America's....' Really good book!

"Fox & Friends Weekend" (Fox News), 6:54 AM

"Fox & Friends Weekend" dedicated a segment to late night talk show hosts who had amped up their criticism of President Trump. "Late Night Hosts Take Hard Turn Left," read the accompanying banner for the segment, which included an interview with the Washington Examiner’s Philip Wegmann. "I think where a lot of these late night comics went wrong is they swapped liberal talking points out for their punchlines," Wegmann said. About an hour later, Trump tweeted a similar complaint that late night hosts are "Dealing with the Democrats for their very 'unfunny' & repetitive material, always anti-Trump!" "Should we get Equal Time?" he asked.

"Fox & Friends Weekend" (Fox News), 8:24 AM

"Fox & Friends Weekend" covered remarks by Steph Curry, who suggested that he and his teammates on the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors would skip the traditional visit to the White House. The segment came paired with a chyron that read, "Curry Wants To Skip White House Visit." A little more than 20 minutes later, President Trump tweeted that the invitation to the Warriors had been "withdrawn."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:19 AM

Shortly after 6:40 a.m., President Trump tweeted his reaction to a bombing in London that he said was carried out by a "loser terrorist." "These are sick and demented people who were in the sights of Scotland Yard," he added. A little more than 20 minutes before that, "Fox & Friends" co-host Brian Kilmeade conducted an interview with Bloomberg columnist Eli Lake. "Can someone tell Scotland Yard?" Kilmeade asked. "Because then they're going to have to be four times as vigilant. We get the same process, Eli. 'Oh yeah, there was an explosion, we were watching these guys, we had them on the radar."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:37 AM

At 7:37 a.m., "Fox & Friends" co-host Pete Hegseth read from a letter sent by Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley and Lindsey Graham to FBI Director Christopher Wray, which asserted that Wray's predecessor James Comey "had already decided he would issue a statement exonerating Seretary Clinton...long before FBI agents finished their work." Just under 20 minutes later, President Trump tweeted his astonishment at the story. "Wow," he said, "looks like James Comey exonerated Hillary Clinton long before the investigation was over...and so much more. A rigged system!"

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 8:04 AM

Fox News contributor and Trump booster Laura Ingraham appeared on "Fox & Friends" just after the 8 a.m. hour. Co-host Brian Kilmeade asked Ingraham incredulously why there were so many federal agencies littered with vacant positions at a time when Texas was getting battered by Tropical Storm Harvey. "I think we can all look at these horrific pictures, and we can conclude that a federal government does need staff," Ingraham said. "We see it acutely in need of staff in a situation like this." About 20 minutes later, not long before he left for a trip to affected areas, Trump responded to the critique, even tagging Ingraham and "Fox & Friends" in his tweet. "We are not looking to fill all of those positions," he said. "Don't need many of them - reduce size of government." It was the second time Trump interacted with the show following one of Ingraham's appearances, having done something similar in March.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:34 AM

A few minutes after 6:30 a.m., "Fox & Friends" described a report in Politico indicating that the Obama administration may have been warned of possible Russian election interference three years ago. Twenty minutes later, Trump tweeted a reference to the same report shortly after he promoted Sen. Luther Strange's appearance on "Fox & Friends" that same morning.

"New Day" (CNN), 7:33 AM

Beginning at 7:47 a.m., President Trump fired off three angry tweets directed at Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, calling him a “phony” and a “con artist” for lying about serving in the Vietnam War. “He cried like a baby and begged for forgiveness like a child,” Trump said in the third and final tweet, which came just after 8:00 a.m. “Now he judges collusion?” Starting at 7:33 a.m., Blumenthal had appeared on CNN’s “New Day,” where he discussed a variety of matters, including the ongoing investigation into potential ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.

"America's Newsroom" (Fox News), 9:03 AM

Shortly after the 9 a.m. hour, Fox News correspondent Catherine Herridge reported the following: “One of the things that may have been in the politics of this discussion is that when you look back on 2016, there really is an argument based on the testimony we heard yesterday that the objective of the Russians was really just to damage the system, so they collected and spread negative information not only about Hillary Clinton, but also about then-candidate Trump.” Roughly a half-hour later, Trump paraphrased Herridge -- and even tagged her in the tweet.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:03 AM

Just after 6 a.m., "Fox & Friends" co-host Steve Doocy showed off a full-page advertisement taken out by Fox News in that morning's edition of the New York Times. The ad quoted a story that had run in the Times calling the morning program "the most powerful TV show in America" -- given the fact that President Trump tunes in most days. About 45 minutes later, Trump tweeted, "Wow, the Failing @nytimes said @foxandfriends '...the most powerful show in America.'"

"Hannity" (Fox News), 10:05 PM

Sean Hannity opened his broadcast on July 24, 2017 with a monologue that touched on alleged collusion between the Ukrainian government and Hillary Clinton's campaign. "Are we ever going to look into that?" asked Hannity, one Trump's most vocal media cheerleaders. The following morning, Trump, a known user of TiVo, tagged Hannity in a tweet that called on Attorney General Jeff Sesssions to look into the matter. "More Ukrainian efforts to sabotage Trump campaign - 'quietly working to boost Clinton," Trump tweeted. "So where is the investigation A.G."

"MSNBC Live" (MSNBC), "CNN Newsroom" (CNN), 9:00 AM

A few minutes after 9 a.m., CNN's Jeff Zeleny reported that President Trump had been tuning in to television coverage of the scandal surrounding his son, Donald Trump Jr. Moments later, on MSNBC, the Washington Post's Philip Rucker informed viewers that Trump has "been watching a lot of television news the last few days" to see coverage of his son. It isn't clear which channel the president was watching at that moment. What we do know, however, is that at 9:39 am, Trump took to Twitter to say that the White House is "functioning perfectly" and he actually has "very little time for watching T.V."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:12 AM

Shortly after 6 a.m., "Fox & Friends" told viewers about a "brand new bombshell report" in The Hill, which indicated that some of the memos former FBI Director James Comey recorded to document his conversations with President Trump contained "secret" or "confidential" information. The anchor explained that the report suggests Comey may have put "our national security at risk" when he shared one of the memos with a friend who in turn shared it with the New York Times. A little after 6:30, "Fox & Friends" tweeted out a clip of the segment under a caption saying that the report accused Comey of leaking "top secret information" to a friend. Both the tweet and on-air explanation mischaracterized the report, which never said that the document shared by Comey was classified. Trump retweeted the "Fox & Friends" tweet, and then at 6:40 fired off his own tweet: "James Comey leaked CLASSIFIED INFORMATION to the media. That is so illegal!"

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 8:07 AM

On the same morning that his daughter, Ivanka Trump, appeared on "Fox & Friends," President Trump rattled off a series of tweets that may have been prompted by the show. The tweets referenced a story that had run days before in the Washington Post, and which detailed how former President Obama and his administration had failed to thwart Russia's election interference. In the four tweets, which were written over a span of about 20 minutes, Trump accused Obama of collusion, and said that Obama did nothing about Russia's alleged meddling because he believed that Hillary Clinton would win the 2016 election. Less than an hour before Trump hit send on his final tweet, the co-hosts of "Fox & Friends” had discussed what they termed the Post’s “blockbuster story."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 8:06 AM

Shortly after the 8:00 AM hour, the co-hosts of "Fox & Friends" talked to conservative commentator Laura Ingraham about interactions between former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former FBI Director James Comey regarding the investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server. Within 45 minutes, Trump lashed out against Lynch on Twitter, saying she "made law enforcement decisions for political purposes...gave Hillary Clinton a free pass and protection."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:20 AM

During a discussion on "Fox & Friends," correspondent Ed Henry noted that the Trump administration was struggling to get its appointees, including ambassadors, approved. About two hours later, Trump complained that Democrats were acting as "obstructionists" and blocking approval of his ambassadors. As he has done in the past, Trump even tagged the show for good measure.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:25 AM

In three separate tweets on a Sunday morning, President Trump appeared to take cues from his favorite cable news program. At 6:25 a.m., "Fox & Friends" aired an interview with the psychologist James Mitchell, who responded to a terror attack in London by saying that the British government needs to "stop being politically correct.” Less than an hour later, Trump echoed that point in a tweet. At 7:31 a.m., Trump mocked comments that London Mayor Sadiq Khan had made responding to the attack. Ten minutes before Trump's tweet, a "Fox & Friends” co-host had asked a guest about the mayor's remarks. Later in the morning, Trump noted the absence of a "gun debate" following the London attack. "That's because they used knives and a truck!” he wrote. Shortly after 6 a.m., a "Fox & Friends” co-host had made nearly the same point verbatim.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:06 AM

A little after 6 a.m., "Fox & Friends" reported on-air that Democrats had spurned former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page in his attempts to testify on the Russian investigation. A half-hour later, Trump echoed the assertion in a pair of tweets.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 9:53 AM

Fox News correspondent Ed Henry was reporting live all morning at a restaurant in Lake Worth, Florida -- just down the road from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago -- where Henry was promoting his book about Jackie Robinson. Shortly before the 10 a.m. hour, Henry spoke to a group of the president’s supporters, many of them holding pro-Trump signs. “FL Diners Weigh In On President’s Performance,” read the chyron on-screen, while Henry asked the voters if they had any regrets over their vote. They didn’t. Almost 15 minutes after the segment began, Trump tweeted his thanks to Lake Worth.

"The Lead" (CNN), 4:31 PM

CNN's Jake Tapper and Manu Raju discussed the state of play in Georgia's sixth congressional district, where a closely contested special election was underway. Tapper noted that the Democrat in the race, Jon Ossoff, has "faced tough questions" due to the fact that he lives outside the district. Seven minutes later, Trump said on Twitter that he had "just learned" about Ossoff's controversial place of residence.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:17 AM

The conservative author Michael Knowles appeared on “Fox & Friends” to promote his book, “Reasons to Vote for Democrats” -- a joke title; the book has 200 blank pages and very few words. Co-host Brian Kilmeade had a good laugh about it before inviting Knowles to praise Trump. “Do you think when it comes to foreign policy, the last eight years are being exposed right now?” Kilmeade asked. “It is unbelievable,” Knowles replied, “how within the first 100 days of this presidency, we have exposed the total failure of the last eight years of foreign policy.” Less than an hour later, Trump reciprocated through Twitter, paraphrasing Knowles and plugging the empty book.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 8:02 AM

Fox News correspondent Adam Housley appeared on "Fox & Friends" just after 8 to discuss his reporting on alleged unmasking of Trump officials. “We know that there was this: There was electronic surveillance of Trump and the people close to Donald Trump, including some supporters, for up to a year before inauguration," Housley said. "That information was disseminated, we’re told, through NSA channels. It’s unprecedented, I’m told, the way this was done.” A little under an hour later, Trump quoted Housley, nearly verbatim.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:06 AM

At 6:06 a.m., the hosts of "Fox & Friends" noted that the mainstream media had given "zero coverage" to a Fox News report claiming that a high-level U.S. intelligence official had unmasked, exposed, the names of Trump campaign associates in intelligence reports. A little less than 10 minutes later, Trump praised the "amazing reporting on unmasking," which he called the "real story."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:12 AM

Shortly after 7 a.m., "Fox & Friends" teased an interview with author Peter Schweizer, who would, co-host Steve Doocy promised, "blow the lid off" the story about alleged ties between the Russian government and former Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. Four minutes later, just before Doocy's interview with Schweizer began, Trump urged his followers to tune in.

"New Day" (CNN), 8:05 AM

CNN correspondent Joe Johns referred to the most recent Gallup survey, saying “there’s a new poll out suggesting the president’s approval numbers have sunk to a new low, a historic new low in fact.” Although Johns didn't specify the pollster behind the numbers, Trump tweeted 20 minutes later that he "heard Fake News CNN is doing polls again."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:09 AM

Looking ahead to a congressional hearing on alleged Russian interference in the election, "Fox & Friends" co-host Steve Doocy noted that former director of national intelligence James Clapper “said there was no evidence of collusion” between the Russian government and Trump. "It looks like that story could actually be put to bed later today," Doocy said. A little more than 25 minutes later, Trump echoed that point in a series of tweets, including one dismissing "the Russian story" as "FAKE NEWS" peddled by Democrats and one referring to Clapper.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:39 AM

Not long after 6:30 a.m., co-host Abby Huntsman told Fox viewers about "Snoop Dogg's disgusting attack on President Trump." The rapper had caused a stir with a music video showing him carrying out the mock execution of a clown dressed like Trump. Huntsman said the video had sparked "nationwide outrage” and drawn "the attention of the Secret Service." A little more than 20 minutes later, Trump tweeted his own observation, suggesting there would be more "outcry" if Snoop Dogg "had aimed and fired the gun at President Obama."

"Squawk Box" (CNBC), 6:52 AM

CNBC aired an interview shortly before 7 a.m. with LinkedIn executive editor Dan Roth, who detailed a report that measures monthly employment trends based on statistics from the site. Roth said the current pace of hiring is the strongest since the summer of 2015. Nearly 20 minutes later, Trump tweeted the same data point from the study.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 8:08 AM

Trump responded to a "Fox & Friends" interview with Fox News commentator Laura Ingraham, who lamented that the GOP's Obamacare replacement bill didn't improve competition across state lines. "Don't worry," Trump tweeted, seemingly at Ingraham, "getting rid of state lines, which will promote competition, will be in phase 2 & 3 of healthcare rollout."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 8:03 AM

Trump tweeted that Russia "ran over" Obama, who he called "weak." Only ten minutes before that tweet, "Fox & Friends" co-host Brian Kilmeade said that Russia "ran right over" Obama for eight years. Trump once again tagged "Fox & Friends" in the tweet.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:04 AM

Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney appeared on the program shortly after 7 am to promote the Republicans' bill to replace Obamacare, which he said was not really "affordable care" but instead "affordable coverage." Trump did his part to promote the GOP's "wonderful new" bill -- while also lashing out at Obamacare -- with a tweet less than 10 minutes later.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:13 AM

Shortly after "Fox & Friends" flashed a graphic claiming that 122 former detainees at Guantanamo had "re-engaged in terrorism," Trump tweeted out the same figure, wrongly pinning the blame on former President Obama for the recidivism. Trump's tweet, which came about a half-hour after Fox promoted the graphic on Twitter, ignored that 113 out of the 122 detainees who re-engaged in terrorism were actually released by former President George W. Bush -- not Obama. The Fox & Friends segment, notably, did not claim that Obama released the detainees.

"Fox & Friends Sunday" (Fox News), 6:26 AM

Reporting from a pro-Trump rally, a Fox News correspondent asked one supporter, "Who was it who said, ‘Tell Vladimir that after the election I'll have more flexibility?'" The correspondent was talking about a comment President Obama made in March 2012, talking to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and referring to a U.S.-led NATO missile defense system, that was picked up on a hot mic. It appeared in a Trump tweet less than 15 minutes after it aired on Fox News. As with other tweets, Trump tagged "Fox & Friends."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:37 AM

"Fox & Friends" conducted an interview with Nick Adams, the author of the book "Green Card Warrior." At the outset of the discussion, co-host Steve Doocy asked Adams about Trump's push to move toward a "merit-based" immigration system. "Steve, that's a brilliant idea," Adams replied. "That's exactly what needs to happen." About 20 minutes after the interview ended, Trump promoted the book on Twitter (and even tagged "Fox & Friends" for good measure).

"New Day Sunday" (CNN), 6:32 AM

CNN senior media correspondent Brian Stelter discussed a New York Times TV advertisement with “New Day” anchor Victor Blackwell. The ad, which is about the importance of truth, is the Times’ first TV spot in seven years. About 10 minutes after the segment, Trump called the ad “a bad one” meant to save the Times’ “failing reputation."

"Fox & Friends Saturday" (Fox News), 7:36 AM

Businessman and former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain lamented that he hadn't heard "anybody talk about" a particular data point out of Trump's first month in office. "Did you know that the national debt in President Trump's first month went down $12 billion?" Cain said. "In the 44th president's first month, it went up $200 billion." A little more than 40 minutes later, Trump cited the same figures, which he said the media had overlooked.

"Fox & Friends Sunday" (Fox News), 6:24 AM

Fox anchor Abby Huntsman cited State Department figures showing that 72% of refugees to be admitted into the United States from February 3-11 came from the seven countries affected by Trump’s immigration ban. About a half-hour later, Trump tweeted the same statistics.

"Morning Joe" (MSNBC), 8:03 AM

The hosts of "Morning Joe" read an excerpt from a blog post published on Lawfare, which cited a statute that perhaps gave legal cover to Trump’s immigration order. Moments later, Trump quoted the very same excerpt in a tweet.

"New Day" (CNN), 8:05 AM

CNN's Chris Cuomo interviewed Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who had said the previous day that Judge Neil Gorsuch, Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court, had expressed misgivings with the president's public attacks on a federal judge. Prior to the interview, Trump tweeted that Blumenthal had mischaracterized Gorsuch's remarks -- despite the fact that a Gorsuch spokesperson confirmed them -- and also mocked the senator for lying about his Vietnam War service years ago.

"New Day" (CNN), 6:56 AM

A discussion on "New Day" touched on the previous weekend's edition of SNL, including one sketch that portrayed White House chief strategist Steve Bannon as the de facto president. "This image of Bannon pulling his strings has got to hurt because he knows it's widely believed," said anchor Chris Cuomo. CNN's senior media correspondent Brian Stelter, appearing on the same panel, noted that Trump had thus far "declined to tweet about it."

"New Day" (CNN), 6:30 AM

CNN revealed the findings of its latest poll, which showed that Trump's approval rating of 44% lagged well behind past presidents. Trump took to Twitter a half-hour later to denounce “[a]ny negative polls” as “fake news.”

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:04 AM

A protest at the University of California-Berkeley was the topic of conversation on "Fox & Friends" this morning, with the hosts noting that some demonstrators had thrown rocks at cops. The protest led to the cancellation of a planned event featuring right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos. "Here's what's troubling," said host Steve Doocy. "Berkeley was the home of the free speech movement in the 1960s, and last night there was no free speech. A betrayal of Berkeley's colorful history."

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:10 AM

The hosts of Fox News Channel's morning show mocked the technical malfunctions that occurred the night before at a protest held by Democratic leaders, where Nancy Pelosi struggled to be heard due to a faulty microphone. "If you want to know how not to have an event," said co-host Steve Doocy, "this is it."

"New Day" (CNN), 7:16 AM

Conservative activist Gregg Phillips was interviewed by CNN's Chris Cuomo about his unfounded claim that millions of illegal votes were cast. Phillips offered no evidence to support his assertion, but Trump – tweeting about an hour later – said he was eager to see the final results.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 5:50 AM

Fox News anchor Abby Huntsman reported on an editorial by Chelsea Manning that was critical of President Obama's time in office. Huntsman suggested that Manning had described Obama as a "weak leader," although the term was not used in the piece. As Huntsman spoke, a banner describing Manning as an "ungrateful traitor" appeared on screen.

"The O'Reilly Factor" (Fox News), 8:13 PM

"The O’Reilly Factor" segment featuring Horace Cooper, included the following statistics about Chicago's crime rate: “228 shootings in 2017 (up 5.5% from last year” and “42 homicides in 2017 (up 24% from last year).”

"Today" (NBC), 7:14 AM

NBC correspondent Ari Melber filed a report saying that “companies are willing to deal with this as a PR issue” to avoid critical tweets from Trump. Melber also said that, according to companies he had spoken to, Trump’s job creation and preservation “is very small or nonexistent.” Those remarks were made earlier in the morning.

"New Day" (CNN), 8:01 AM

CNN released its latest poll that morning, and a segment at 8:01 a.m. on New Day highlighted that 53% of Americans are less confident now in Trump. The chyron said, “TRUMP BEGINS WITH HISTORICALLY LOW APPROVAL RATING.”

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 7:25 AM

Linda Bean, heiress to the L.L. Bean company, appeared on "Fox & Friends" shortly before 7:30 a.m. – roughly an hour and a half before Trump’s tweet – to talk about a boycott against her company because of a board member who supported Trump.

"New Day" (CNN), 6:14 AM

CNN’s Alisyn Camerota teased a panel discussion and said that, “On the campaign trail, President-elect Trump promised to protect women and make Mexico pay for the border wall. But both of those promises may soon be broken.” Trump tweeted about the border wall and the "dishonest media" less than 10 minutes later.

CNN, 12:52 PM

CNN senior media correspondent Brian Stelter appeared on television all morning discussing the network's new book, "Unprecedented," about the 2016 election. Stelter's final appearance came about 40 minutes before Trump tweeted about the book. During that appearance, Stelter said the cover photo of Trump was taken a couple weeks after Election Day: “It turns out on Election Night, Trump wouldn’t let any photographers behind the scene … Maybe that’s because Trump was not expecting to win on Election Night.”

"Newsroom" (CNN), 10:51 AM

Chicago’s crime statistics were all over the news the day Trump tweeted about the city's murder rate. But a segment on CNN ran a little more than 90 minutes before Trump's tweet. During the segment, the same statistics cited in the Trump tweet appeared on screen.

CNN, 5:10 AM

Shortly after 5 a.m., CNN reported on a “potential conflict of interest” for Trump, citing sources who said he would remain as an executive producer on "The Celebrity Apprentice."

"Erin Burnett Outfront" (CNN), 7:18 PM

CNN's Erin Burnett conducted an interview with Chuck Jones, the president of United Steelworkers 1999, who disputed Trump's claim that he saved 1,100 jobs at the Carrier plant in Indiana. "I think he ought to make sure he gets all the facts straight before he starts talking about what he's done," Jones said in the interivew.

"Fox & Friends" (Fox News), 6:25 AM

Fox News Channel ran a segment about a protest at Amherst College after the school stopped flying all flags. The school's decision came after students allegedly burned an American flag to protest Trump’s electoral victory.