President Donald Trump was interested in hosting a talk radio show from the White House amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a New York Times report published Wednesday.
Trump reportedly proposed a radio show with live call-ins in early March.
“A talk radio show, Mr. Trump excitedly explained, would allow him to quell Americans’ fears and answer their questions about the pandemic directly, according to three White House officials who heard the pitch,” the Times’ article states. “There would be no screening, he said, just an open line for people to call and engage one-on-one with the president.”
However, Trump himself reportedly hedged the idea because he was nervous about competing with conservative radio star Rush Limbaugh, as the president wanted to do a two-hour show every day.
“(W)ere it not for Mr. Limbaugh, and the risk of encroaching on his territory, he reiterated, he would do it,” according to the Times.
Though the idea of a radio show was apparently abandoned, Trump is trying to keep in near-daily contact with the country through the coronavirus press briefings, during which he often clashes with members of the media.
He threatened to leave the briefing Tuesday after Playboy reporter Brian Karem repeatedly questioned him.
“If you keep talking, I will leave and you can have it out with the rest of these people,” Trump told the reporter.
“If you keep talking, I’m going to leave and you can have it out with them,” the president said, labeling Karem a “loudmouth.”
Trump has also relied on his trusted medium for communicating with Americans: Twitter.
Trump’s use of Twitter once again kicked off a news cycle this week about his relationship with Dr. Anthony Fauci.
In a Sunday retweet, Trump posted a tweet from a user that contained the hashtag #FireFauci. This was after Fauci, in an interview with CNN, appeared to be critical of Trump’s response to the virus. (RELATED: Fauci Says May 1 Reopen Date ‘A Bit Overly Optimistic,’ Press Briefings Are ‘Really Draining’)
In the Monday press conference, Fauci spoke positively of Trump and seemed to endorse the president’s handling of the virus.
Trump also said Monday that he would not fire Fauci, and downplayed the retweet, saying, “I re-tweeted somebody, I don’t know. They said fire. It doesn’t matter.”
