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President Donald Trump on Sunday night attacked ABC and NBC\u2019s news coverage of his administration\u2014claiming it was \u201c97%\u201d negative\u2014and said he supports the idea of the two networks having their broadcast licenses revoked, escalating his fight<\/a> with the news media, which has involved legal cases and other regulatory threats. <\/p>\n U.S. President Donald Trump continued his attacks on media outlets he views an unfavorable of him.<\/p>\n Getty ImagesKey Facts<\/p>\n Trump attacked the two broadcast networks in a series of posts on his Truth Social platform, alleging<\/a>: \u201cABC & NBC FAKE NEWS, two of the worst and most biased networks in history, give me 97% BAD STORIES,\u201d despite what he claimed was a successful first 8 months in office.<\/p>\n The president then suggested that this alleged negative coverage of him means the two networks \u201cARE SIMPLY AN ARM OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY AND SHOULD, ACCORDING TO MANY, HAVE THEIR LICENSES REVOKED BY THE FCC.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump said he is totally in favor of such a revocation, as he again accused the networks of being \u201cbiased and untruthful, an actual threat to our Democracy,\u201d without citing any evidence.<\/p>\n In a follow-up post<\/a>, the president reiterated the license revocation threat, before suggesting that \u201cat a minimum,\u201d they should be forced to \u201cpay up BIG\u201d for their licensed broadcast spectrum, an idea previously endorsed<\/a> by billionaire and former Trump ally Elon Musk.<\/p>\n Trump indicated that such a fee, which is not currently levied on networks using the airwaves, could be \u201cMillions of Dollars a year.\u201d<\/p>\n What Did Trump Say About His Poll Numbers?<\/p>\n Before his posts attacking ABC and NBC, Trump falsely claimed<\/a> he now has the \u201chighest poll numbers\u201d he has ever had, \u201csome in the 60\u2019s and even 70\u2019s.\u201d In the post, Trump appeared to dismiss a series of negative polling numbers about him as \u201cFake News.\u201d <\/p>\n What Do We Know About Trump\u2019s Actual Polling Numbers?<\/p>\n Despite Trump\u2019s claims of \u201chigh popularity,\u201d recent polling numbers<\/a> from major outlets, paint a much less flattering picture for the president. A Reuters\/Ipsos poll published last week, pegged his approval rating at 40% while his disapproval rating stood at 54% (up two points from July). The poll was taken after Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska earlier this month, and it found that 54% Americans, including 1-in-5 Republicans, believe he is too closely aligned with Russia. All other polls released this month showed Trump\u2019s net approval ratings in the negatives, ranging from -3 to -20 points.<\/p>\n Key Background<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s attacks on NBC and ABC News come less than two months after Paramount, the parent company of the broadcast network CBS, announced it had reached a $16 million settlement<\/a> with the president. Trump had filed a lawsuit against the network over a CBS News 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris that aired ahead of last year\u2019s election. The president claimed CBS News had deliberately edited the interview to make the Democratic presidential candidate\u2019s replies appear more competent. A few weeks after the settlement, Paramount\u2019s pending $8 billion merger with Skydance was approved<\/a> by the FCC. After greenlighting the deal FCC Chair and Trump appointee Brendan Carr praised Skydance\u2019s commitment to making changes at CBS, including news and entertainment programming, \u201cembody a diversity of viewpoints,\u201d and ending Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.<\/p>\n Tangent<\/p>\n An hour before his posts about ABC and NBC, Trump commented<\/a> on former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie\u2019s Sunday morning appearance<\/a> on ABC News. Trump suggested that Christie could face a federal probe over his handling of the 2013 \u201cBridgegate\u201d scandal. On ABC News, Christie spoke about the raid on former National Security Adviser John Bolton\u2019s home and said, \u201cIt\u2019s funny to hear the president talk the way he does about Bolton and classified information, yet when he had classified information, the same rules didn\u2019t apply. In response, Trump said<\/a>, \u201cCan anyone believe anything that Sloppy Chris says? Do you remember the way he lied about the dangerous and deadly closure of the George Washington Bridge in order to stay out of prison, at the same time sacrificing people who worked for him, including a young mother, who spent years trying to fight off the vicious charges against her.\u201d The president then added: \u201cFor the sake of JUSTICE, perhaps we should start looking at that very serious situation again? NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW!\u201d <\/p>\n Further Reading<\/p>\n