The Democratic National Committee has barred Fox News from hosting its presidential primary debates, prompting the network to urge the party to reconsider. “We hope the DNC will reconsider its decision to bar Chris Wallace, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, all of whom embody the ultimate journalistic integrity and professionalism, from moderating a Democratic presidential debate. They’re the best debate team in the business and they offer candidates an important opportunity to make their case to the largest TV news audience in America, which includes many persuadable voters,” Fox News Senior Vice President Bill Sammon said in a statement. CNN ACCUSED OF STACKING AUDIENCE VS. BERNIE SANDERS IN TOWN HALL EVENT Earlier in the day, DNC Chairman Tom Perez announced the party would not allow Fox News to host primary debates, claiming they would not be “fair and neutral” forums for the candidates. “I believe that a key pathway to victory is to continue to expand our electorate and reach all voters,” Perez said in a statement to The Washington Post that cited a critical article in The New Yorker. “That is why I have made it a priority to talk to a broad array of potential media partners, including Fox News. Recent reporting in the New Yorker on the inappropriate relationship between President Trump, his administration and Fox News has led me to conclude that the network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates. Therefore, Fox News will not serve as a media partner for the 2020 Democratic primary debates.” While some Fox News Channel opinion hosts have come under fire for ties to the Trump administration, Wallace, Baier and MacCallum are anchors from the news division who have been praised for their handling of past debates. In 2016, Wallace moderated a presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. FOX NEWS DOMINATES MSNBC, CNN ACROSS THE BOARD DURING FEBRUARY Reacting to the DNC’s decision, Baier tweeted Wednesday, “That’s really a shame. When it comes to fairness - our news product speaks for itself. We will continue to cover this 2020 race fairly & will continue to invite Democrats- Republicans & Independents on to talk about key issues & substance with our very large viewing audience.” The DNC announced last month that NBC News will host the first Democratic primary debate of the 2020 election cycle in June. Back in 2016, the Republican National Committee famously pulled out of a planned NBC News Republican primary debate after a similar event on CNBC was criticized for allegedly unfair questions.<doc-sep>Former Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairman Ed Rendell said the Democratic Party made a mistake by barring Fox News from televising 2020 debates. “I think it was a mistake for the DNC to do what it did,” he said on Fox News’s “The Ingraham Angle” Thursday night. “I know they were taken off a little bit by the New Yorker article, but as you said: If I was DNC chair, I would, and I think Tom Perez is doing a good job — but if I was DNC chair, Laura, I would say give me Brett Baier, Chris Wallace, and Juan Williams and you can have that Fox debate anywhere, anytime, any number of times. I’d be confident that it’d be fair.” Fox News host Chris Wallace accused some Democrats of having “Fox derangement syndrome.” (RELATED: Chris Wallace: Democrats Suffer From ‘Fox Derangement Syndrome’) “Recent reporting in the New Yorker on the inappropriate relationship between President Trump, his administration and Fox News has led me to conclude that the network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates,” DNC chairman Tom Perez said in a statement. “Therefore, Fox News will not serve as a media partner for the 2020 Democratic primary debates.” Fox’s Senior Vice President Bill Sammon released a statement on behalf of the network Wednesday, saying he hopes the DNC will reconsider. “We hope the DNC will reconsider its decision to bar Chris Wallace, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, all of whom embody the ultimate journalistic integrity and professionalism, from moderating a Democratic presidential debate. They’re the best debate team in the business and they offer candidates an important opportunity to make their case to the largest TV news audience in America, which includes many persuadable voters,” Sammon said. Fox News Host Sean Hannity called the Democratic Party’s move “gutless.” Follow Henry Rodgers On Twitter Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.<doc-sep>President Donald Trump fired back at the Democratic National Committee after it decided to exclude the Fox News Channel from broadcasting any of its candidates' debates during the 2020 US presidential primary. The DNC's decision to blacklist Fox News prompted a response from other journalists, some of whom suggested it was not a good look for the party. Bret Baier, Martha MacCallum, and Chris Wallace are all anchors whose respective time slots precede the shows from Fox News' popular opinion hosts like Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham. Several 2020 Democratic candidates have already appeared for exclusive interviews with Fox News anchors in recent weeks, including Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. Fox News anchors have previously been praised by their peers for their work, and some of that praise has come from journalists at competing news networks. President Donald Trump fired back at the Democratic National Committee after it decided to exclude Fox News Channel from broadcasting any of its candidates' debates during the 2020 US presidential primary. "Democrats just blocked [Fox News] from holding a debate," Trump tweeted Wednesday night. "Good, then I think I'll do the same thing with the Fake News Networks and the Radical Left Democrats in the General Election debates!" DNC chairman Tom Perez said that he considered several "potential media partners," for the 2020 primary and decided to exclude Fox News after a New Yorker article published online suggested the network had "become propaganda" for the Trump administration. The article, which was anonymously sourced from former Trump campaign officials and former Fox News executives, describes how the network allegedly maintains close ties to the Trump administration and intentionally provides favorable coverage. "Recent reporting in the New Yorker on the inappropriate relationship between President Trump, his administration and FOX News has led me to conclude that the network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates," Perez said in a statement. "Therefore, FOX News will not serve as a media partner for the 2020 Democratic primary debates." DNC chair Tom Perez outside the White House. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik Fox News senior vice president Bill Sammon said in a statement that he hoped the DNC would reverse its decision. "We hope the DNC will reconsider its decision to bar Chris Wallace, Bret Baier, and Martha MacCallum, all of whom embody the ultimate journalistic integrity and professionalism, from moderating a Democratic presidential debate," Sammon said in his statement. "They're the best debate team in the business and they offer candidates an important opportunity to make their case to the largest TV news audience in America, which includes many persuadable voters," Sammon added. The DNC's decision also prompted a response from other journalists, some of whom suggested it was not a good look for the party. "There are plenty of quality journalists at Fox, some of whom have been excellent questioners at past presidential debates," NBC News political reporter Jonathan Allen tweeted on Wednesday. "And really, if you can't answer questions — especially if they're not the questions you want asked — maybe you don't have good answers." "Whether it's the case or not, it sends a message of being afraid of something," New York Times White House correspondent Maggie Haberman added. "Which is what Trump feeds off in opponents." Fox News anchor Chris Wallace, former anchor Megyn Kelly, and anchor Bret Baier. REUTERS/Aaron Josefczyk Baier, MacCallum, and Wallace are all anchors whose respective time slots precede the shows from Fox News' popular opinion hosts like Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham. Several 2020 Democratic candidates have already appeared for interviews on Fox News in recent weeks, including Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. Perez has also been interviewed by Fox News anchors, telling Baier at the end of an interview in late January, "it's always good to be with you." "That's really a shame," Baier said on Twitter. "When it comes to fairness — our news product speaks for itself." "Our large audience deserves to hear ALL the candidates who are running for the Presidency of the United States," MacCallum tweeted. "We welcome them all, with our continued commitment to fair, professional journalism." Fox News has previously hosted town halls exclusively for Democratic candidates. During the 2016 Democratic primaries, the network hosted a town hall in Detroit for Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. The event was held one day before the Michigan Democratic primary and was moderated by Baier. Fox News anchors have previously been praised for their work, and some of that praise has come from journalists at competing news networks. "Wells done by Chris Wallace," CNN political analyst David Gregory tweeted after Wallace moderated the last presidential debate between Trump and Clinton in October 2016. "I would have liked fewer topics and more engagement, but tough questions for both. Kept order. He's a pro." "Nice work, Chris Wallace," Washington Post reporter David Fahrenthold also tweeted after the event.<doc-sep>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Democratic National Committee on Wednesday said it will not allow Fox News to host any of its candidates’ political debates through 2020, citing a report this week about the conservative channel’s ties to U.S. President Donald Trump. A Fox News channel sign is seen at the News Corporation building in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., June 15, 2018. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz “Recent reporting in the New Yorker on the inappropriate relationship between President Trump, his administration and Fox News has led me to conclude that the network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates,” DNC Chairman Tom Perez said in a statement provided to Reuters. “Therefore, Fox News will not serve as a media partner for the 2020 Democratic primary debates,” Perez said in a statement. Representatives for Fox said they hoped the DNC would reconsider and let some of its journalists moderate a Democratic presidential debate. Trump responded to the announcement by saying he may refuse to participate in certain debates. “I think I’ll do the same thing with the Fake News Networks and the Radical Left Democrats in the General Election debates!” he said in a Twitter post. Trump has criticized CNN and MSNBC, among other media, as “Fake News” for their coverage of his administration. The DNC’s decision is a rerun of the 2016 primary election, when it turned down Fox’s multiple offers to host a debate, citing the network’s longstanding conservative bent and prominent criticism of Democratic policies. At that time a Democrat, Barack Obama, occupied the Oval Office. Trump, a Republican seeking re-election in 2020, has stoked polarization between the two U.S. political parties by appealing to his base on Twitter and television and policy speeches while simultaneously publicly attacking and feuding with prominent Democrats. The New Yorker earlier this week reported on “seamlessly” close ties between Trump and the television network founded by Rupert Murdoch, citing an expert on presidential studies who said Fox is the “closest we’ve come to having state t.v.” The article went on to describe the access and interviews that members of the White House have granted exclusively to the network. As the field of competition to become Democrats’ next presidential nominee grows ever more crowded, the party has decided to split its first primary debate over two weeknights this summer. Twelve people have already jumped into the race and the DNC has capped each debate night at 20 candidates. The party’s primary debates this year will mark a sharp reversal from its last round of contests, when less than half a dozen politicians appeared at a handful of debates that were televised on Saturday nights and other times with notoriously low television viewership.<doc-sep>
Some members of Democratic Party suffer from “Fox derangement syndrome,” Fox News journalist Chris Wallace said Thursday when asked about the Democratic National Committee’s decision to bar the network from hosting its presidential primary debates. DNC Chairman Thomas Perez made the announcement a day earlier, citing a one-sided New Yorker magazine article that claimed Fox News is aligned with the Trump administration. "You know how we talk about 'Trump derangement syndrome,' or [similar obsession with] Obama? I think that, in the left wing of the Democratic Party, there is 'Fox derangement syndrome,'” Wallace told Brian Kilmeade on Fox News Radio. "I think that the left wing of the Democratic Party there is Fox derangement syndrome." — Chris Wallace DNC BARS FOX NEWS FROM HOSTING PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY DEBATES; NETWORK URGES PARTY TO RECONSIDER “And even though they know that, Martha MacCallum and Bret Baier and I would give a fair debate, the idea of anything with Fox News presents the Democratic debate and they were just looking for an excuse and the New Yorker article gave it to them," Wallace added. Wallace pointed out that Republicans did debates on all of the major networks during the 2016 election cycle and said it’s critical to reach different types of voters. “There are going to be a lot of people that would watch a Fox debate,” he said, adding that he co-moderated the most-watched debate in cable news history. CNN’S CHRIS CUOMO ACCUSED OF POLITICIZING ALEX TREBEK’S CANCER DIAGNOSIS But on Wednesday, DNC Chairman Tom Perez announced the party would not allow Fox News to host primary debates, claiming they would not be “fair and neutral” forums for the candidates. “I believe that a key pathway to victory is to continue to expand our electorate and reach all voters,” Perez said in a statement to The Washington Post that cited a critical article in The New Yorker. “That is why I have made it a priority to talk to a broad array of potential media partners, including Fox News. Recent reporting in the New Yorker on the inappropriate relationship between President Trump, his administration and Fox News has led me to conclude that the network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates. Therefore, Fox News will not serve as a media partner for the 2020 Democratic primary debates.” While some Fox News Channel opinion hosts have come under fire for ties to the Trump administration, Wallace, Baier and MacCallum are anchors from the news division who have been praised for their handling of past debates. In 2016, Wallace moderated a presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton and the network has urged the DNC to reassess the situation. FOX NEWS DOMINATES MSNBC, CNN ACROSS THE BOARD DURING FEBRUARY “We hope the DNC will reconsider its decision to bar Chris Wallace, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, all of whom embody the ultimate journalistic integrity and professionalism, from moderating a Democratic presidential debate. They’re the best debate team in the business and they offer candidates an important opportunity to make their case to the largest TV news audience in America, which includes many persuadable voters,” Fox News Senior Vice President Bill Sammon said in a statement. Reacting to the DNC’s decision, Baier tweeted Wednesday, “That’s really a shame. When it comes to fairness - our news product speaks for itself. We will continue to cover this 2020 race fairly & will continue to invite Democrats- Republicans & Independents on to talk about key issues & substance with our very large viewing audience.”