Judge Jeanine Pirro’s show, “Justice with Judge Jeanine,” will return to Fox News this weekend, fellow host Sean Hannity revealed on Wednesday.
Fox News had apparently suspended Pirro’s show for the last two weeks as punishment for the controversial comments she made about Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) earlier this month. While it will make Pirro’s viewers happy to know the suspension has been reversed, fans are still outraged that she was even suspended in the first place.
Fox’s decision was heavily criticized by the network’s pro-Trump base, and even the president weighed in, demanding that Fox “bring back Judge Jeanine.”
Pirro to return
Hannity shared the news of Pirro’s return during an interview with President Donald Trump Wednesday night, Trump’s first since he was exonerated by Robert Mueller this weekend of collusion. Trump complimented Fox hosts and other journalists who gave “fair” coverage throughout the Russiagate hoax, including Mark Levin, Laura Ingraham, and the hosts of Fox and Friends.
The president told Hannity that he hoped Pirro would “be back soon,” prompting Hannity to reply that her suspension will end this Saturday. Fox confirmed Thursday that Pirro will be back.
Pirro came under fire for a March 9 monologue in which she questioned whether Omar’s wearing a hijab was a sign of her loyalty to sharia law, which Pirro suggested meant that she could not be loyal to the United States and the Constitution. Fox swiftly distanced itself from Pirro’s statements and “strongly condemned” the host, but the pundit refused to apologize and invited Omar on her show to have a debate.
“Omar wears a hijab, which, according to the Quran 33:59, tells women to cover so they won’t get molested,” Pirro said. “Is her adherence to this Islamic doctrine indicative of her adherence to sharia law which in itself is antithetical to the United States Constitution?” Pirro said in the controversial segment.
However, that opportunity for debate never came after Pirro was unceremoniously taken off air the following weekend. At the time, Fox News was cryptic about her disappearance, saying that they would not comment on “internal scheduling matters.” Then, it was reported that Pirro’s suspension would last two weeks.
Pirro’s show did not appear on air on Saturday, March 16 or Saturday, March 23. The March 16 show was replaced by the documentary Scandalous: The Trial of William Kennedy Smith.
Fans won’t forget
While Pirro will soon be back, Fox’s decision rattled many viewers who felt that the network had erred by surrendering to the left-wing “mob.” Pirro’s suspension spawned calls for boycotts among some Fox viewers, and Trump weighed in on the controversy too, demanding that Fox “Bring back @JudgeJeanine Pirro. The Radical Left Democrats, working closely with their beloved partner, the Fake News Media, is using every trick in the book to SILENCE a majority of our Country.”
Trump also urged Fox to support Tucker Carlson, who faced a contemporaneous advertiser boycott pushed by left-wing group Media Matters. Fox stood by Carlson, who was attacked for comments he made years ago on a shock jock radio show.
The two weeks of Pirro’s suspension were marked by great drama at the network, as Fox faced boycotts against Pirro and Carlson, and Media Matters staged a protest outside its headquarters in New York.
Many viewers were upset that the network capitulated to the left and silenced a Fox host who, to many, asked a valid question, if tactlessly. Apologists for Sharia law say that it is merely a lifestyle for Muslims based in the Quran, but interpretations of the term vary. The legal codes of several Muslim-majority countries carry severe penalties and restrictions for apostates, gays, and women.
Pirro’s suspension added insult to injury as the congresswoman she criticized ended up evading punishment for comments widely seen as anti-Semitic. Omar’s comments that American politicians’ support for Israel is “all about the Benjamins” paid by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), followed by comments that pro-Israel politicians have dual loyalties, set off a firestorm of controversy that consumed the Democratic party and headlines for several weeks. However, the Democrats never rebuked Omar by name or removed her from the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Other reports of changes at Fox have also made viewers uneasy about the network’s commitments to its largely Trump-friendly audience. Fox brought on Democrat strategist Donna Brazile as a contributor while reports emerged that Fox mogul Rupert Murdoch’s son, Lachlan, would push Fox in a less pro-Trump direction after taking over the corporation.
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