Trump Slams Fox News Saying He Is 'Looking for a New Outlet' After Rare Criticism by the Network

The president took an extraordinary swipe at the conservative news network Monday

President Donald Trump speaking to the media on May 11 at the White House. Photo: Alex Brandon/AP/Shutterstock

Donald Trump expressed dissatisfaction with Fox News on Monday night, saying on Twitter that he is "looking for a new outlet."

While Trump has historically been a proponent of the network, he said that the cable news channel is not what it was under the leadership of former Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes, who died at 77 in 2017.

Ailes was accused by multiple women of sexual harassment, including former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson.

".@FoxNews is no longer the same," Trump tweeted Monday night. "We miss the great Roger Ailes. You have more anti-Trump people, by far, than ever before. Looking for a new outlet!"

His outburst comes after Fox News journalist Neil Cavuto pointed out earlier on Monday that hydroxychloroquine is not a safe drug to be using following Trump's announcement that he is taking the anti-malaria drug.

The president says he is taking the drug to prevent him from contracting the coronavirus, despite the fact that hydroxychloroquine has not been proven to help against COVID-19 and has been linked to a higher death rate.

Donald Trump's Twitter. TWitter

"I happen to be taking it. I happen to be taking it — hydroxychloroquine," Trump told reporters Monday. "And if it is not good, I will tell you right. I'm not going to get hurt by it. It has been around for 40 years for malaria, for lupus, for other things. I take it."

Trump said he began taking the drug a few weeks ago and takes it every day.

Cavuto cited a study on Monday that found "no statistical differences" between COVID-19 patients in New York that had and hadn't taken hydroxychloroquine.

President Donald Trump at the White House on May 13. Evan Vucci/AP/Shutterstock

"If you are in a risky population here, and you are taking this as a preventative treatment to ward off the virus, or in a worst-case scenario you are dealing with the virus, and you are in this vulnerable population, it will kill you," Cavuto said. "I cannot stress enough. This will kill you."

"Whatever benefit the president says this has, and it certainly has had for those suffering from malaria, dealing with lupus, this is a leap that should not be taken casually by those watching at home or assuming what the president of the United States says it's okay," he continued.

Cavuto said he was not trying to make a "political point," but a "life and death point."

"Be very, very careful," he warned viewers.

While Trump has been promoting hydroxychloroquine as a possible treatment for COVID-19 for several weeks, health experts — including the head of the Food and Drug Administration — have warned that the drug needs to undergo trials before it can be asserted to work against COVID-19. Experts also say it is potentially dangerous.

In fact, early research indicates that hydroxychloroquine is actually ineffective against COVID-19.

A Veteran's Affairs study found that patients who took the drug died at a higher rate than those who didn't, and the study's authors said that COVID-19 patients should not be taking it.

“An association of increased overall mortality was identified in patients treated with hydroxychloroquine alone,” the authors said, PEOPLE previously reported. "These findings highlight the importance of awaiting the results of ongoing prospective, randomized, controlled studies before widespread adoption of these drugs."

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