Jeanine Pirro cancels numerous upcoming GOP-aligned speaking events and fundraisers

Written by Eric Hananoki

Published

Updated

Jeanine Pirro

Ceci Freed / Media Matters | Michael Vadon via Creative Commons

Fox News host Jeanine Pirro has recently canceled numerous GOP-aligned events. The reported reasons for the changes include “unexpected circumstances,” “a scheduling conflict,” and that she had “something come up.”

Pirro is the host of the weekend program Justice with Judge Jeanine and one of President Donald Trump’s most vocal defenders in the media. She was briefly suspended by Fox News in March for anti-Muslim bigotry against Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN). 

Pirro recently released the book Radicals, Resistance, and Revenge and had teamed up with GOP-aligned groups to help promote it while also raising money for Republican causes. But many of those events have now been canceled. Media Matters had previously reported on Pirro’s engagements, noting that the speeches violate Fox’s purported policy against “talent” doing campaign events.

Pirro was scheduled to do several events in Florida with the group Trump Team 2020 Florida: a September 18 event in Pensacola; a September 19 event in Jacksonville; a September 22 event in The Villages; and a September 24 event in Vero Beach. 

Karyn Morton, a representative for Trump Team 2020 Duval/Duval Trump Club, which helped organize the Jacksonville event, told Media Matters in an email that “Pirro had to cancel all of her Florida book tour speaking engagements this week & next. We hope to reschedule her and will post when we have a new date set.” She added that “there were unexpected circumstances and she was unable to attend.” Villages-News.com reported that Suzanne Days, president of the Sumter County chapter of Trump Team 2020, said that the event in The Villages “was canceled because Pirro ‘had something come up.’” (Ticket pages for the September 19 and 24 event are still up as of posting.) 

Pirro was also scheduled to headline a fundraiser on October 25 for the King County Republican Party in Washington state; the GOP group recently announced she canceled “due to a scheduling conflict.” Pirro had been fronted $26,250 for the event. 

Additionally, Pirro was scheduled to appear at an October 20 fundraiser at Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., for Jexit, a Florida nonprofit corporation which aims “to educate and encourage American Jews that are currently members of the Democratic Party to exit the Democratic Party and join President Trump who is the greatest friend to Israel and the Jewish people.” But Pirro’s name is no longer on the event’s page. The group has not yet publicly said anything about the change, and a representative for the group did not return a request for comment. 

During a commercial break on Sebastian Gorka’s radio program on September 3, Pirro complained about Fox News’ control over her schedule with regard to show appearances, stating that “Fox reviews everything. They're unbelievable.” 

While at Fox News, Pirro has been extremely active on the Republican campaign trail and has repeatedly appeared at Trump’s properties. Since Trump’s inauguration, Pirro has also received more than $230,000 in speaking fees from GOP groups. 

Several other Fox News-related speaking events have been canceled this year after Media Matters reported on them:

  • Host Brian Kilmeade was set to do a February fundraiser for the Williamson County Republican Party in Tennessee. The party announced that he canceled “due to scheduling conflicts.” 

  • Anchor Shannon Bream was scheduled to do an April fundraiser for the conservative James Madison Institute alongside Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Bream later canceled; no reason was given in a press release announcing the cancellation. 

  • Host Pete Hegseth was going to do an April fundraiser for the Bridgeport Republican Town Committee in Connecticut. The organization then announced that “due to circumstances beyond our control Pete Hegseth will no longer be the Keynote Speaker.”

While Fox News hosts have canceled numerous partisan events this year, Fox Nation hosts such as Rachel Campos-Duffy, Diamond and Silk, Gregg Jarrett, Todd Starnes, and David Webb have all recently done GOP campaign activities. 

Update (10/11/19): In an October 4 post on the Jexit Facebook group, Jexit director and event organizer Karyn Basle wrote: “I found out first hand how deep the assault on free speech is when Fox News insisted Jeanine cancel the #JEXIT benefit because we support President Trump. Fast forward, ironic as it may be... Roger Stone will be our key note speaker.” (Jexit president Michelle Terris also posted the message about Fox allegedly cancelling Pirro's appearance.)