Of course... Lie Lie Lie

Hannity appears on stage at Trump rally, despite vowing he wouldn't

By CAITLIN OPRYSKO

Fox News primetime host Sean Hannity made a cameo appearance on stage Monday night at President Donald Trump's final midterm rally, going back on the pledge he had made hours earlier not to appear on stage with the president.

After interviewing Trump live for his show, Hannity was called on stage by the president to raucous applause from the Cape Girardeau, Mo., crowd. The Fox News host promptly pointed to the press assembled in the back of the room, labeling them “fake news.” Hannity later said he was unaware he would be invited on stage, but spoke briefly about the president’s accomplishments and repeated Trump’s 2020 reelection slogan, “promises made, promises kept.”

Earlier Monday, Hannity specified on Twitter that “I will be doing a live show from Cape Girardeau and interviewing President Trump before the rally. To be clear, I will not be on stage campaigning with the President. I am covering [the] final rally for my show. Something I have done in every election in the past.”

While Hannity has traveled to Trump rallies plenty of times to host his show on site and interview the president, questions about Hannity’s role at the Missouri rally stem from the White House itself. In an email sent out about the rally, the White House billed Hannity as a “special guest” along with conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh and musician Lee Greenwood.

Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, whose show the president has regularly praised, was also called by Trump up to the stage, where she urged the crowd to vote for Republicans.

Trump, in introducing the two personalities, said Hannity was someone who is “very special” and had “been with us from the beginning” and called Pirro a woman who “treats us very, very well.”

Hannity’s close relationship with Trump has put him under the microscope of media watchers who have accused Fox News of being too friendly with the White House. Trump frequently tweets about shows on the network, sometimes appearing to tweet commentary real-time, and Monday he told Hannity that he never misses the primetime show’s opening monologue.

According to a pool report Monday night, Hannity fist-bumped Bill Shine, the former president of Fox who is now White House communications director.

Hannity’s friendship with Trump has previously gotten him in trouble with his employer for pushing the limits of his role as an opinion commentator. He was also reprimanded by Fox in 2016 after he appeared in a campaign video endorsing Trump.

A spokesperson for Fox News did not immediately return a request for comment.