Kari Lake Addresses Report About Joining Cable News Outlet
Former U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake addressed rumors about her joining Newsmax during an appearance on Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast, dismissing the claims as "absolutely fake news."
“That reporting yesterday was absolutely fake news,” Lake stated on Friday. “Think about how bad the media is. You cannot hate them enough, Steve.”
Lake explained the series of events that led to the misinformation, highlighting that both she and Newsmax had denied the story before it was published. “They reached out to me, asked if I was negotiating with Newsmax. I said, no, you know, get better sources. You’re wrong. Apparently, they reached out to Newsmax. Newsmax said it’s false, and they run the story anyway,” she recounted.
Lake, a former Phoenix-area newscaster with decades of experience, criticized the media for what she sees as a decline in journalistic standards. “We cannot possibly have enough ire toward the absolute fake news that we already have. Thankfully, it’s starting to collapse. They’ll just run any fake hit piece for clicks to try to disparage me, and I’m used to it,” she told Bannon.
Comparing her treatment by the media to the scrutiny faced by President-elect Donald Trump, Lake voiced her support for Trump’s idea to revoke broadcasting licenses from outlets accused of spreading false information. She also cited FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr as a central figure in efforts to hold media accountable.
Reflecting on her future, Lake noted she is taking some time to recover after years of leading a grassroots movement in Arizona but clarified that her political journey is far from over.
“I will tell the people listening to this, especially if you’ve got some of the leftists who despise our movement, I’m not going away,” Lake emphasized. “As much as they want me to go away, I am not going away. And so they can’t get rid of me. They can write as many nasty stories about me, filled with lies as they want. We are not going away.”
Lake narrowly lost her Senate race to Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego, who will replace retiring Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema in Washington. Gallego joins Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly in representing Arizona, a state that has transitioned from a Republican stronghold to a battleground.
While Arizona’s governor, attorney general, and secretary of state are Democrats, the GOP still holds a majority in the state legislature and controls most of Arizona’s House seats.
Gallego, a Marine veteran and the son of a single mother with roots in Mexico and Colombia, highlighted his personal story during his campaign, as reported by The Hill. His victory provides a modest boost for Senate Democrats after a mixed election cycle.
Although Democrats retained key Senate seats in battleground states like Nevada, Michigan, and Arizona, they suffered losses in states like Ohio, Montana, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
Lake’s political career began after a two-decade stint as a Phoenix TV anchor. She became a prominent ally of Donald Trump and ran for Arizona governor in 2022, losing to Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs. Hobbs declined to debate Lake during the campaign.
Following her loss, Lake challenged the election results, citing irregularities at polling locations, but her efforts were unsuccessful. A local election official sued her for defamation over her claims, and the case was recently settled for an undisclosed amount, as reported by Mediaite.