“Trump’s second attack of the day on me,” Khanna wrote on X while sharing screenshots of Trump’s Truth Social posts. “This is why I go on Fox. This is why I talk about an economic agenda to build steel, ship, and battery plants in hollowed-out communities.”
Khanna added that Democrats need to engage with voters across the political spectrum instead of simply insulting them.
“This is why I talk to everyone, including Trump voters, without hurling insults,” he wrote. “This is how Democrats will win and unite the country.”
The contrast between the two messages was striking. Khanna’s response focused on manufacturing, jobs, and outreach, while Trump’s posts were packed with personal insults and grievances about Fox allowing Democratic voices on the air.
In one post, Trump complained that Fox’s programming was supposedly undermined whenever guests like Khanna appeared without what he considered sufficient pushback from hosts.
He described Khanna as “a wolf in sheep’s clothing” and accused the congressman of repeatedly lying on air. Trump also lashed out at several other public figures, including Bill Maher and Hakeem Jeffries, while arguing that Fox was damaging itself by platforming critics of his administration.
Trump’s attacks appeared to highlight a broader frustration: despite Fox News remaining largely favorable territory for conservatives, Democratic politicians like Khanna have increasingly used appearances there to speak directly to independent voters and even some Trump supporters.
Khanna, who has focused heavily on rebuilding American manufacturing and industrial jobs, has been trying to position himself as a Democrat willing to engage outside traditional liberal media spaces. His messaging about steel plants, battery production, and economic investment in struggling communities has gained attention in recent months.
The congressman has also been among the Democrats pushing for additional transparency surrounding files connected to Jeffrey Epstein, an issue that has become politically sensitive for Trump and several high-profile figures tied to Epstein over the years.
Trump later doubled down with another Truth Social post attacking Khanna and claiming Democrats were trying to take credit for improvements in the steel industry that he says resulted from his tariff policies.
Khanna responded again with a sharp jab of his own:
“The man building a ballroom with foreign steel probably shouldn’t call himself the champion of American steel,” he wrote. “But as you learned from the Epstein files, I’m open to working across the aisle. So how about signing my steel bill to actually rebuild the American steel industry?”
The exchange quickly spread across social media, with supporters of Khanna arguing that Trump’s repeated attacks show concern that Democratic economic messaging could resonate with some working-class voters who previously backed him.
For critics of Trump, the episode reinforced a familiar pattern: long, angry posts aimed at opponents who manage to break through conservative media spaces and challenge his narrative directly in front of his own audience.
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