Fox News drew Trump’s ire as he posted through midterm elections and wasn’t happy with results

A Guam victory came first

Trump’s election day began with a post at 12:07 p.m. ET announcing that Guam had been called for Republicans. Tony Ada won the governorship, ending Democratic control of the position that had lasted since 2014.

Guam’s election was separate from the U.S. midterms and did not change the makeup of the Senate or House. As U.S. results came in, the outlook for Republicans grew less favorable.

Trump turns on Fox News

At 6:36 p.m. ET, shortly after the first polls closed, Trump began criticizing Fox News. He returned to the attack at 7 p.m., claiming the network’s ratings had fallen because it spent too much time covering what he called the “Trump Deranged Dumocrats.”

Fox News viewership was down 27 percent from the same period a year earlier. Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch attributed the drop to “viewer fatigue” after several years of intense news cycles.

Polls and election results

A Reuters/Ipsos poll shortly before the midterms found Trump’s approval rating at a record low, with 31 percent of Americans approving of his performance in office. Trump also cited a CNN poll asking Republicans which president they admired most, saying he had 53 percent, compared with 18 percent for Ronald Reagan and 8 percent for Abraham Lincoln.

Veto threat after the vote

Trump posted an image of a red cap embroidered with “veto,” resembling his “Make America Great Again” hats. In a call to Fox News, he said he was “a little bit surprised” by the results and indicated he would block legislation from the Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. The Constitution gives presidents the power to veto legislation, but Congress can override a veto with a two-thirds majority in both chambers.