Fox News recently joined a series of mainstream media outlets in pushing the false narrative that former President Donald Trump’s statement on countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) paying their fair share signals that the former president will allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to invade Europe if he wins the 2024 election.
Trump has been an outspoken advocate of forcing NATO countries to pay for their defense.
The former president recently held a rally in South Carolina, where he warned that he would allow Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to NATO countries unwilling to pay.
“You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?” Trump said. “No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills.”
Trump’s remarks were condemned by Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume, who became the latest media figure to portray Trump as an agent of the Russian government, suggesting that the former president would allow Putin to invade Europe.
Hume was asked by Fox News host Bret Baier to comment on a Wall Street Journal Editorial Board column, claiming Trump “dotes on dictators.”
In response, Hume said, “My guess about that Bret was it is, it’s typical Trump loose talk. My guess is that he meant that as a way of threatening the NATO allies that haven’t paid their full freight to which they are supposedly committed and have said they would pay and they’re not doing it, all of them.”
“A lot of them are but some of them are not and so he’s trying to get them to pony up,” Hume added. “But loose talk about possibly not backing our NATO allies in the event of an attack from an enemy, particularly including Russia, is not helpful.”
Hume continued by saying that the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war has unified NATO and has “strengthened” the organization.
Fox's Brit Hume Admonishes Trump Over NATO Comments: 'This Kind of Talk Tempts Dictators'
— Mike Walker (@New_Narrative) February 13, 2024
The Fox News chief political analyst said although Trump’s comments that NATO countries have refused to pay their fair share are legitimate, the former president’s remarks “tempts dictators, tempts aggressors, and doesn’t help.”
