Newsmax host Greg Kelly had a very difficult time coping with Joe Biden officially becoming president on Wednesday. So much so, that he essentially wished for America’s failure.
All throughout President Biden’s inauguration day, right-wing media struggled to come to grips with the end of Donald Trump’s presidency. After heaping praise on Trump’s “graceful” exit from the White House—Trump skipped the inauguration after inciting an insurrectionist riot—One America News, for instance, virtually ignored Biden’s swearing-in.
Newsmax, meanwhile, took a different route. Besides effusively lauding the outgoing president, they painted Biden’s widely praised inaugural address, which focused on unity and repairing the nation, as “dark” and “divisive.” And by primetime, they followed competitor Fox News’ lead in ignoring Biden’s “Celebrating America” inaugural concert.
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This is where Kelly stepped in.
The former Fox News personality, who has helped Newsmax attract disgruntled Trump supporters by happily peddling election denialism, began his program on Wednesday evening by openly hoping that Biden does not succeed as president.
“How do you feel about Joe Biden? He is the President of the United States,” Kelly grumbled. “It’s ok, ladies and gentleman, to say you do not wish the president success.”
Making sure his viewers knew that he wished Biden “no harm” and, after a brief pause, he “wants him to be healthy and happy in his life,” Kelly went on to explain why he wanted the new president to fail.
“I wish Joe Biden no success,” he declared, adding that he doesn’t want Biden to enter the Paris Climate Agreement or nuclear deals with Iran.
“So, it’s actually okay to say you don’t want to see Joe Biden succeed,” Kelly continued with his justification. “Remember, he’s the head of the executive branch. Okay? And we have three branches and they are all co-equal. Fair enough? Fair enough.”
Kelly, at the very least, is now acknowledging that Biden is the president, which is major progress for the Trumpian host. Even after his network—which initially refused to acknowledge Biden’s election victory—finally admitted Biden was president-elect following the Dec. 14 Electoral College vote, Kelly continued to hold out hope.
Besides repeatedly saying he did not “personally feel” Biden was the president-elect, Kelly kept convincing himself (and his audience) that “it’s not over” and the president’s futile lawsuits could overturn Biden’s decisive victory, even telling Trump not to concede following the seditious riots.
