Donald Trump clashes with media figures over ratings and taxpayer-funded ads

President Donald Trump has engaged in a public dispute with media figures Bill Maher and Joe Scarborough. In posts on Truth Social, Trump criticized Maher’s viewership and suggested Republicans should stop using him as a sounding board. Trump also targeted Scarborough, claiming his show would soon be ‘dead’ due to poor ratings, despite recent data showing a 27% year-over-year increase in August viewers for ‘Morning Joe’.

Scarborough responded by criticizing the president’s use of taxpayer-funded political advertisements. The ads, which feature Trump discussing a ‘final battle’ against the ‘Deep State’, include a disclaimer stating they were ‘paid for by the U.S. government’. Scarborough characterized the use of state funds for political messaging as ‘communism’ and ‘socialism’, comparing the tactic to moves made by leaders like Viktor Orbán and Vladimir Putin.