Trump hails Maria Bartiromo a ‘true warrior’ after shock Fox News departure over alleged White House leaks

Maria Bartiromo Leaves Fox News After 12 Years; Trump Issues Public Statement

President Donald Trump responded on his Truth Social platform to the departure of Maria Bartiromo from Fox News and Fox Business. In his post, Trump stated that he could not believe Bartiromo would no longer host her programs on the network. He noted that she had three shows that consistently ranked first in their time slots, described her as a total professional and a true warrior, and said her fans would not be pleased with the change. He concluded the message with “God bless you, Maria!”

Eric Trump also posted on X, calling Bartiromo the best in the business and the hardest-working person in media. He described her as smart, kind, and principled, and said she was the best interviewer on television. He added that he was proud to have appeared with her over the past 15 years at events including Wall Street, Davos, and Milwaukee.

Fox News Media issued a brief statement announcing that Bartiromo was no longer with the company effective immediately. The statement thanked her for her work over the previous 12 and a half years and wished her well on her next chapter. The network did not provide additional details at the time of the announcement.

Media journal Status later reported that Bartiromo was dismissed after she allegedly shared an internal Fox directive with the Trump administration. According to the report, the directive instructed shows to avoid the president’s claims, made in a July Oval Office address, that unnamed national security officials had undermined U.S. election security and that China had interfered in the 2020 election. The address did not include supporting evidence for those assertions. Status stated that sharing the directive violated the terms of her employment agreement.

Fox News has maintained a more cautious approach to 2020 election claims since settling a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems in April 2023 for $787.5 million. Bartiromo has not issued a public statement about her departure. The Independent contacted the White House, Fox News Media, and Bartiromo’s attorney for comment.

Bartiromo conducted multiple interviews with Trump during his time in office and afterward. According to Alex Isenstadt’s 2025 book *Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power*, she was among those seriously considered as a potential vice-presidential running mate in 2024 before Trump selected JD Vance. More recent speculation that she might succeed White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was addressed by Vanity Fair correspondent Aidan McLaughlin, who wrote that Bartiromo was not leaving Fox for a position in the administration.

Fox Business announced programming adjustments following the departure. The weekday program *Mornings with Maria* on Fox Business will be rebranded *Mornings with Fox Business* and will feature a rotating group of hosts. The Friday program *Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street* will be renamed *Fox Business Network’s Wall Street* and was scheduled to be hosted by Cheryl Casone in the immediate term. The weekend program *Sunday Morning Futures* will be presented by Jason Chaffetz for the time being, with a permanent replacement to be named later.

Bartiromo has received attention from figures outside politics as well. Punk rock musician Joey Ramone wrote a song about her after developing an interest in her stock-market reporting on television. The track appeared on his 2002 solo album *Don’t Worry About Me*.