Fox News has hired former White House press secretary Sarah Sanders as a contributor, adding another loyalist to President Trump to its lineup of pundits and hosts.
The network said Sanders will make her debut as a contributor on “Fox & Friends” on Sept. 6 and would provide commentary on other Fox programs and networks, including Fox Business Network, Fox Nation and its radio division.
Former White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, who once sparred with journalists, has decided to join them. Fox News said Thursday that Sanders has been hired to provide political commentary and analysis across all of its properties, including Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network and the radio and podcast division. Evan Vucci/Associated Press, file
Sanders served as Trump’s press secretary from July 2017 until late June, when she resigned, saying she was moving back to her native Arkansas. She is widely considered to be eyeing a run for governor of the state, but has not announced.
Sanders is the daughter of Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas who is also a Fox News contributor. She joined Trump’s campaign in 2016 after managing her father’s unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination against Trump.
Former press secretaries are typically in high demand by the cable news networks because of their insight into the personalities, politics and policies at the White House and their familiarity to the public. Top White House communications officials such as George Stephanopoulos (ABC), Dee Dee Myers (CNBC), Jay Carney (CNN), and Robert Gibbs (NBC), among others, all went on to TV pundit careers after working for presidents.
Sanders was a frequent interview guest on Fox during her time as press secretary. During her tenure, the White House stopped giving press briefings, but Sanders nevertheless appeared regularly on Fox, especially “Fox & Friends,” the network’s top-rated morning program.
Fox has a long history of providing a platform for Republicans hoping to maintain their visibility before launching new campaigns for office. Most prominently, it gave Trump a regular weekly spot on “Fox & Friends” in 2011. Trump used his time on the air to float themes that would later be part of his presidential campaign. He regularly criticized President Barack Obama on the program, at times raising his discredited “birther” conspiracy theory against the president.
Fox’s current roster of contributors includes former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain, former Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz, former Bush White House press secretary Ari Fleischer, and former House speaker Newt Gingrich. It has previously employed former Sen. Scott Brown, Liz Cheney, former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (now at CNN), and former Sen. Rick Santorum (also now at CNN) in contributor roles.
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