Former President Donald Trump has called for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to take action against NBC News anchor Kristen Welker, accusing her of making inaccurate statements about his endorsement record.
In a statement shared on Truth Social, Trump stated that Welker, host of "Meet the Press," should face "rebuke or punishment" from the FCC for what he described as "purposeful inaccuracy."
Welker had commented during the Sunday broadcast of "Meet the Press" that Trump's endorsements in Republican primary elections this cycle had "mixed results." Trump strongly disputed this assessment, asserting a high success rate for his endorsements.
"How can anyone be allowed to say this, working for freely given Public Airwaves?" Trump wrote. "Because of this purposeful inaccuracy, she will be reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment."
According to Ballotpedia data cited in reports, Trump has made 313 endorsements, with a 96% success rate overall. Trump himself claimed a 100% success rate in GOP Senate primaries and a 98% success rate in House GOP primaries. He contended that many of the candidates he backed "were not even given a shot of winning until I Endorsed."
Trump pointed to recent successes such as his backing of Sen. Darline Graham in her primary runoff and Mike Mazzei's victory in the Oklahoma GOP gubernatorial primary as evidence of his endorsement's strength. He also highlighted endorsements in Texas, Louisiana, and South Carolina Senate races.
However, reports also noted several instances where Trump's endorsed candidates did not win, including endorsements for Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.), Amir Hassan in Michigan, Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), Randy Feenstra in Iowa, Burt Jones in Georgia, and Mike Lindell in Minnesota.
Trump dismissed criticism of his endorsement record as coming from "Radical Left News" seeking to "harass, demean, and libel anything 'TRUMP.'" He characterized his endorsement as "without question, the strongest Endorsement in the History of Politics."
Trump urged FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr to "take this Threat to our Country very seriously," referring to the comments made on "public airwaves." NBC News operates broadcast stations that require FCC licenses due to limited public airwave spectrum.
This is not the first time Trump has publicly criticized media figures over their coverage of his endorsements. He previously expressed dissatisfaction with comedian Bill Maher regarding similar comments. The White House administration had previously targeted ABC News, which led to a lawsuit.