President Donald Trump on Monday touted a “Fox & Friends” report that the previous administration spied on him during the election ― an idea that has been widely debunked.
As Trump congratulated “Fox & Friends” on its “amazing reporting,” he was ignoring analysis from his own intelligence officials that there’s no evidence such surveillance occurred.
Just minutes earlier, Trump’s favorite morning show tweeted that a “bombshell report over the weekend shows a ‘very high up’ Obama official unmasking Trump associates for political purposes.” Trump often praises the program and tweets about stories its hosts have recently discussed.
Trump has for weeks claimed that former President Barack Obama spied on him. But FBI Director James Comey last month told Congress that there is “no information” to support the president’s claims. National Security Agency Director Mike Rogers made a similar comment. And James Clapper, who served as director of national intelligence during the time the alleged spying would have occurred, has also denied the reports.
Several members of Congress have called on Trump to retract the allegations, but so far he’s only doubled down.