--- title: Donald Trump Keeps Hiring Cable TV News Pundits description: It shouldn't be surprising that President Donald Trump has sought to staff his Administration with some friendly cable pundits. canonical: https://time.com/5241456/donald-trump-cable-tv/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-04-16T16:22:30.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T09:06:20.035Z article:section: Politics og:title: Why President Trump Keeps Hiring Cable TV Pundits og:description: From the green room to the White House og:url: https://time.com/5241456/donald-trump-cable-tv/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt16bc6590b18d87a0/6988f50586f68e475b6e7936/mark-wilson-top-100-photos-2017.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2405 og:image:height: 1353 og:image:alt: U.S. Nat'l Security Advisor H.R. McMaster Speaks To Press After News Report Of Trump Discussing Classified Info With Russians og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why President Trump Keeps Hiring Cable TV Pundits twitter:description: From the green room to the White House twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt16bc6590b18d87a0/6988f50586f68e475b6e7936/mark-wilson-top-100-photos-2017.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Why President Trump Keeps Hiring Cable TV Pundits > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=2d445495-f269-4564-b95a-8d771a457428&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Why President Trump Keeps Hiring Cable TV Pundits [Watch (HLS stream): Why President Trump Keeps Hiring Cable TV Pundits](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Zpd4tEeb.m3u8) (2:18)  _Published 2018-04-13. From the Green Room to the White House_ by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Apr 16, 2018 4:22 PM UTC by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Apr 16, 2018 4:22 PM UTC Before he ran for office, Donald Trump [spent a lot of time](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/everyone-tunes-in-inside-trumps-obsession-with-cable-tv/2017/04/23/3c52bd6c-25e3-11e7-a1b3-faff0034e2de%5Fstory.html) in cable TV green rooms. His presidential campaign [benefited greatly](https://www.cnbc.com/2016/09/30/breakingviews-trump-cold-shoulder-for-tv-ads-may-set-the-trend.html) from cable news coverage. As president, he reportedly [watches quite a bit](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/09/us/politics/donald-trump-president.html) of CNN, MSNBC and Fox News. So it shouldn’t be surprising that Trump has sought to staff his Administration with some friendly cable pundits. In March, Trump [hired CNBC commentator and economist Larry Kudlow](http://time.com/5197983/larry-kudlow-replace-gary-cohn-what-to-know/) to be director of the National Economic Council, [named former U.N. ambassador and cable news mainstay John Bolton](http://time.com/5212129/john-bolton-hr-mcmaster-donald-trump/) as national security advisor and [promoted former “Fox and Friends” host Heather Nauert](https://www.bustle.com/p/trumps-admin-appoints-heather-nauert-a-former-fox-friends-host-as-acting-under-secretary-8494591) as an acting under-secretary in the State Department. They weren’t the only pundits to go from the green room to the White House. Former Deputy National Security Adviser [K.T. McFarland regularly appeared](http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/trailguide/la-na-trailguide-updates-donald-trump-names-mcfarland-1480101559-htmlstory.html) on Fox News as a commentator for years. Short-lived White House Communications Director [Anthony Scaramucci was a frequent presence](http://time.com/4885294/anthony-scaramucci-misunderstood/) on Fox Business Network. And [Carl Higbie](https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/18/politics/kfile-carl-higbie-on-the-radio/index.html), a former spokesman for the agency that runs AmeriCorps, was a guest on cable news shows. Not all of the hires have worked out. Trump has been rumored to have considered Fox News host [Jeanine Pirro](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/22/business/media/jeanine-pirro-of-fox-news-helps-an-old-friend-president-trump.html) for deputy attorney general and Fox contributor [Pete Hegseth](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-eyes-fox-and-friends-personality-pete-hegseth-to-take-over-veterans-affairs/2018/03/15/f8d03ef6-284e-11e8-b79d-f3d931db7f68%5Fstory.html) for secretary of Veterans Affairs, though neither got the job. And Fox contributor [Monica Crowley](http://money.cnn.com/2017/01/16/media/kfile-crowley-out/index.html) withdrew from consideration for deputy national security advisor over a plagiarism scandal. He’s is not the first president to look for a reassuring face from cable news to fill his Administration. President Obama [once considered hiring CNN’s Sanjay Gupta](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/barackobama/4946031/Sanjay-Gupta-withdraws-name-as-Barack-Obamas-surgeon-general.html) for surgeon general. Some of these positions involve representing the Administration’s viewpoints on TV, so it makes sense that Trump would turn to them. As a president who is particularly focused on salesmanship, he’s also more likely to hire based on those skills. And some of these pundits also have real-world experience: Bolton worked in the George W. Bush Administration and Kudlow worked in the Reagan Administration. But the sheer number of cable pundits that Trump has hired or considered hiring shows how much more seriously he takes cable news than his predecessors. For Trump, selling his presidency on cable news is a full-time job. ## Transcript Donald Trump first got into national politics through cable news. A National Enquirer of all folks did a poll recently and they said I'd win the election. Long before he ran for president, the Manhattan real estate modul liked going on CNN, Fox news to share his thoughts. When the economy crashes, when the country goes to total hell. And everything is a disaster, then you'll have a, you know, you'll have riots to go back to where we used to be when we were great. So it's not surprising that Trump has continued to filter political news this way. As president, he often watches hours of cable news each week, according to multiple accounts. And as he heads into his second year, he's sought to remake his Administration with some friendly faces from cable Cable TV. In March, Trump hired CNBC commentator and economist Larry Kudlow to be director of the National Economic Council. He named former U. N. ambassador and cable news mainstay John Bolton as national security advisor. And he promoted former " Fox and Friends" host Heather Nauert as an acting under secretary in the State department. They weren't the first pundits to go from the Green Room to the White House. Former Deputy National Security Adviser K. T McFarland regularly appeared on Fox News as a commentator for years. Short- lived White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci was a frequent presence on Fox Business Network. And Carl Higbie, a former spokesman for the agency that runs AmeriCorps. Corps, was a guest on cable news shows. Not all of the hires have worked out. Trump has bee rumores to have considered FOx News host Jeanine Pirro for deputy attorney general and Fox contributor Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Veterans Affairs, though neither got the job. And Fox contributor Monica Crowley was pulled from consideration for deputy national security advisor over a plagiarism scandal. What happened to me was a despicable, straight up political hit job. Trump is not the first president to look for a reassuring face from cable news to fill his Administration. President Obama once considered hiring CNN's Sanjay Gupta for surgeon general. But the sheer number of cable pundits that Trump has hired or considered hiring shows how much more seriously he takes cable news than his predecessors. For Trump, selling his presidency on cable TV is a full- time job. Tonight it's live on Fox. It's live. Who likes Fox? I like Fox. 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