Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade sharply rebuked online conspiracy theorists on Monday for claiming the assassination attempt against President Donald Trump during the White House Correspondents Association dinner was staged to bolster his approval ratings.
The Fox News morning host addressed the speculation while praising President Trump for swiftly sharing details about the attack. According to Mediaite, Kilmeade told viewers, I love the fact the president started giving the facts out. It doesnt stop the conspiracy theories, but hopefully it squelches them, before adding, All of a sudden Im hearing, Well the whole thing is Was it staged? Was it staged so the presidents approval ratings can go up?
His colleague Lawrence Jones immediately pushed back on the narrative, responding, Its unbelievable. Kilmeade, underscoring the gravity of an attack on a sitting president, replied, Its insane, and insisted, Nothing could possibly have been staged. FBI Director Kash Patel on that coming up.
Mediaite reported that conspiracy theorists online had been alleging the incident was staged as part of an apparent plot by Mr. Trump or others to distract from bad polling numbers or the war with Iran. The outlet further noted that the term staged quickly surged on social media, with more than 300,000 posts on X by midday Sunday.
The Fox & Friends panel used the moment not only to condemn the fringe theories but also to demand stronger security protocols for the commander in chief. During Mondays broadcast, the co-hosts compared the needed changes to the sweeping security overhaul that followed the September 11 terrorist attacks, arguing that protecting the president must take precedence over convenience.
Jones stressed that the federal government cannot limit robust security to official venues alone. The [White House] ballroom obviously needs to be built, but in the meantime, weve still got to secure the events outside of the ballroom, he said, noting the private nature of the press gala. Every single event that the president or cabinet members are gonna be [at] are not gonna be government events. Like for example, Im not sure this Correspondents Association Dinner could have been held at the ballroom if it was built. Its a private organization.
He then raised a broader concern about national priorities and federal responsibility. Can we only protect federal buildings at this point? What a disgrace as a country. I mean, we just got to do better, Jones said, reflecting a sentiment common among conservatives who see security as a core duty of government rather than a political talking point.
Co-host Ainsley Earhardt emphasized the reality of modern threats and the need to shield the president from these crazy people. She argued that Americans have already accepted major lifestyle changes for safety in other contexts, saying, And like he said over the weekend, it is probably the most dangerous job, and is it gonna be an inconvenience? Yes. Look after 9/11 what we had to go through, what we still have to go through, at the airports. Ziploc bags, the X amount of ounces per, you know, all our hairspray.
Earhardt concluded that the same mindset should apply to safeguarding the nations leader, even if it means more restrictions and screening at public events. All that stuff just to make sure were safe on the airplanes, and is it a pain in the rear end? Yes, but is it worth it? Yes, she said, underscoring a conservative view that serious threats demand serious, and sometimes inconvenient, security measures rather than cynical partisan spin.
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