Fox News Anchor Leaps to Trump’s Defense Over Sharpie-Gate, Claims ‘We Don’t Have Any Evidence’

Fox News anchor Sandra Smith jumped all over a guest who brought up President Donald Trump’s well-documented efforts to bolster his false claim that Alabama was in the path of Hurricane Dorian, cutting her off by insisting “We don’t have any evidence that he did that.”

On Thursday morning’s edition of America’s Newsroom, DNC Communications Director Xochitl Hinojosa was explaining the difference between the Democratic presidential candidates and Republicans on the issue of climate change.

“All of them believe that climate change is real and that we need to address this urgent threat in our nation in our world,” Hinojosa said, and added, “I think the difference is, you saw yesterday, Donald Trump, in order to prove a tweet right, was trying to make, put Alabama in the pathway of a hurricane.”

“He doesn’t show up to meetings with world leaders, and so…” she continued, but Smith talked over her to defend Trump.

“By the way we don’t have any evidence that he did that,” Smith said, adding “He says he didn’t. He doesn’t know who did it, he said.”

As Hinojosa laughed audibly at Smith’s claim, the anchor tossed to a clip of RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, and Trump’s days-long gaffe did not come up again.

Smith’s claim that there isn’t “any evidence” that Trump tried to “put Alabama in the pathway of a hurricane” is, of course, belied by Trump’s repeated efforts to publicly and explicitly do just that. According to Mediaite, he “sextupled down” on his errant claim that the state was in danger.

But Smith was likely referring to the Sharpie-doctored map that Trump presented to the media, which Hinojosa did not mention. Even on that count, however, it is false to say there isn’t “any evidence” Trump didn’t alter that map.

Aside from Trump’s well-known affinity for Sharpies, and six public attempts to bolster his false claim, and dubious claim not to know who altered the map right in front of his face, there’s also the fact that a White House official confirmed to CNN that the map was altered just before the photo op, but another source refused to rule Trump out as the one who drew on the map.

That’s not conclusive proof, but it is evidence.

Watch the clip above, via Fox News.

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