Trump has said: Except what is written and broadcast in the Fake News, I now have the highest poll numbers I’ve ever had

President Donald Trump lashed out at ABC and NBC in a string of posts on Truth Social, accusing the two networks of producing overwhelmingly negative coverage of his presidency. He claimed that “97%” of their stories about him were bad, and argued that the broadcasters function as “an arm of the Democrat Party.” Trump suggested their licenses should be revoked by the FCC, adding that he fully supports such a move.

The president doubled down in a follow-up post, saying that at the very least the networks should be forced to pay large fees for their use of public broadcast spectrum. He floated the idea that they could be charged “millions of dollars a year,” echoing an earlier proposal from billionaire Elon Musk.

Before the tirade against ABC and NBC, Trump falsely asserted that his poll numbers are at record highs, claiming some were “in the 60’s and even 70’s.” In reality, recent surveys show him underwater. A Reuters/Ipsos poll last week put his approval rating at 40% and his disapproval at 54%, with many Americans — including one in five Republicans — believing he is too close to Russia following his recent meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Other polls this month also show Trump with negative net approval ratings ranging from -3 to -20 points.

The attacks on the networks come just weeks after Paramount, parent company of CBS, settled a $16 million lawsuit Trump had filed over a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, which he said was deceptively edited. Soon after, the FCC — led by Trump-appointed chair Brendan Carr — approved Paramount’s $8 billion merger with Skydance. Carr praised the deal, highlighting commitments to broaden viewpoints in CBS programming and to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.