With Fox & Friends Like These…

It’s hard to imagine that the human centipede relationship between Fox News and the Trump administration could be any tighter than it already seemed. And yet, that seems to be exactly what’s happened, according to a new batch of emails obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

According to a new series of emails obtained by the Sierra Club and reviewed by The Daily Beast, former EPA administrator and hilariously shameless grifter par excellence Scott Pruitt was reportedly given the extremely shady privilege of reviewing questions ahead of time before he’d make his appearances alongside the couch-occupiers of Fox & Friends. According to the emails, Pruitt’s office was even allowed to approve one of the show scripts.

It goes without saying that this is wildly fucked up. While it’s common for interviewer and interviewee to determine the scope of the conversation prior to it happening, it’s another thing altogether than showing the interviewee the exact questions they’re going to be asked ahead of time, and especially so if that interviewee is a powerful government official, such as a member of the Cabinet.

Even the ordinarily morally bankrupt ghouls at Fox News seem to know this is pretty fucked up, telling the Daily Beast that: “This is not standard practice whatsoever and the matter is being addressed internally with those involved.”

In any case, while Pruitt is no longer a part of the Trump administration, Fox News remains the president’s preferred source/disseminator of what could laughably be called “news.” So, if you weren’t already skeptical as hell each and every time one of the White House’s spokesdemons showed their face on Fox & Friends, Hannity, Tucker Carlson, or whatever new pablum the network is hawking this week, keep in mind that however bad you thought things might have been, odds are they’re so much worse.