Fox News host praises Trump for policy details — and gets the details wrong
Ainsley Earhardt failed to mention that it was Trump who capped the state and local tax deduction and that the U.S. is already energy independent
Written by Payton Armstrong
Research contributions from Media Matters Staff
Published
On the September 18 edition of Fox & Friends, co-host Ainsley Earhardt praised former President Donald Trump, claiming he “gives specifics” for such policy proposals as decreasing energy bills by 50%, becoming “energy independent again,” and bringing back the state and local tax deduction.
Earhardt failed to mention that it was Trump who got rid of the SALT deduction, that the U.S. is currently energy independent, and that experts say the president has little ability to affect energy prices.
On September 17, Trump vowed to undo part of the signature tax policy of his first term — capping the SALT tax deduction — writing in a Truth Social post that he would “get SALT back” if he wins the election, without elaborating or providing specifics. NBC described Trump’s comment as “the latest in a series of seemingly impulsive policy comments that have turned heads within his party.”
On the campaign trail, Trump has also been questionably promising to cut energy costs by 50% in 12 months, while experts say that as president, Trump would be “equipped with few levers to influence energy prices, which are largely controlled by executives and policymakers across a range of oil-rich countries.”
But on the September 18 edition of Fox & Friends, Earhardt praised Trump for vowing to bring back the SALT deduction and to “lower your energy bill by 50% in the first 12 months,” claiming “he gives specifics” and criticizing Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris for “word salads.”
During the segment, the on-screen chyron read: “Trump outlines a straightforward economic agenda while Harris remains vague.”
Earhardt failed to mention it was Trump who capped the SALT tax deduction, saying, “Donald Trump says he’s gonna bring back the SALT — the SALT, what do you call it? The SALT tax or deduction so you can deduct, yeah, your state and local tax from your income, which New Yorkers would love, Connecticut would love, all the high-tax states would love.”
Citation From the September 18, 2024, edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends
AINSLEY EARHARDT (CO-HOST): They already broke with the boss by kicking him out and putting her in it, so I think she has to prove that I have better solutions for the economy, because under our administration, everything was up. We showed you the prices. But she doesn't have solutions. It's all a word salad about she grew up in the middle class. She wants your — everyone wants their lawns to look pretty. Opportunity economy. What is an opportunity economy?
Give me specifics of what you're gonna do. Like, Donald Trump says he's gonna bring back the SALT – the SALT, what do you call it? The SALT tax or deduction so you can deduct, yeah, your state and local tax from your income, which New Yorkers would love, Connecticut would love, all the high-tax states would love.
So he gives specifics. He talked about energy. He's gonna lower your energy bill by 50% in the first 12 months. She's talking in word salads, opportunity economy. What is that gonna do for us?
Later in the show, Earhardt again praised Trump for giving “specifics” such as saying he will “decrease your energy bills by 50% in the first 12 months” and make the U.S. “energy independent again.” (She failed to mention that the U.S. is currently energy independent under the Biden/Harris administration.) Earhardt said: “He gives specifics, but she doesn't. She does these just these phrases.”
Citation From the September 18, 2024, edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends
EARHARDT: “Harris' formula for national media interviews: Don't make news.” And that's why she keeps saying the same phrases when she's asked what we're going to do for the economy, what are you going to do differently, and she says a new generation of leadership, opportunity economy, whatever that means.
You ask Donald Trump and he says, we're going to decrease your energy bills by 50% in the first 12 months, we're gonna be energy independent — I mean, dependent. Independent. Energy independent, again, like we used to be.
And he gives specifics, but she doesn't. She does these just these phrases. I don't know how they affect any of us.