Fox News host Leland Vittert on Sunday pressed radio host R.J. Harris, an outspoken supporter of President Trump, on why the president’s apparent economic successes haven’t translated to strong approval ratings.
Vittert specifically noted a new poll from ABC News and The Washington Post, in which 60 percent of respondents said they disapprove of Trump’s performance in office. The poll also found that only 3 percent of African-Americans approve of the president’s job performance.
{mosads}“Where’s the disconnect?” Vittert asked his guest.
“The disconnect is still in the mainstream media,” Harris responded. “The mainstream media is blamed for everything, I’m not trying to take the easy path here, but they spend so much time beating him up.”
Vittert interjected by asking if that assessment didn’t give voters enough credit.
“When you sit here and continue to say blame the mainstream media, people are smart,” Vittert said. “If their pocketbooks are full and they’re feeling good and they’re buying stuff and they feel like they’re going to get a promotion and a raise at work, do they really care what the mainstream media tells them?”
Harris agreed with the statement, adding that he thinks “America is pretty darn happy right now.”
“If people are so happy why isn’t it reflected in the polling numbers?” the host pressed.
Harris then said that he wasn’t sure that was the case, asserting that the African-American community was doing “much better” economically under Trump.
The back-and-forth came only days after Trump’s disapproval rating reached a new all-time high, according to the ABC News/Washington Post poll.
Trump has repeatedly ripped the media for its coverage of his administration and has continually pointed to African-American employment as an example of his success.
The unemployment rate for African-Americans has had an overall decline since 2011, when former President Obama was in office.