- Fox News correspondent
Jennifer Griffin is forcefully pushing back on claims made by guests. - She accused a guest defending Russia's
Ukraine invasion of "appeasement."
Fox News correspondent Jennifer Griffin accused a former Pentagon official of "appeasement" after he defended Russia's invasion of Ukraine on the network.
It's the latest in a series of increasingly exasperated attempt by the respected security correspondent to fact-check guests pushing misleading or baseless claims on the network.
The network is known for inviting guests who promote controversial views or misinformation, often receiving little pushback.
Guests and top-rated hosts including Tucker Carlson defended Putin in the buildup to the invasion, in line with a years-long sympathy for Vladimir Putin's Russia in the US populist right. (Carlson later changed his position.)
In an appearance on the network Sunday, Army Col. Douglas Macgregor, who was a Pentagon official in the Trump administration, said the West should stay out of the Ukraine conflict.
He argued that it was wrong for the US to support Ukrainian resistance and that Putin should be allowed to seize some of the country.
—Dave Brown (@dave_brown24) February 28, 2022
"We will not send our forces to fight, but we are urging Ukrainians to die pointlessly in a fight they can't win. We're going to create a far greater humanitarian crisis than anything you've ever seen if it doesn't stop," said Macgregor.
Griffin responded, calling Macgregor out for what she called the "so many distortions in what he just said."
She went on to suggest that some the policies Macgregor had advocated while he was working for the Trump administration helped to embolden Putin.
"The kind of appeasement talk that Colonel Macgregor, who should know better — when he was in government, he was the one who was advising Trump to pull all troops out of Germany," Griffin said.
"That projection of weakness is what made Putin think he could move into a sovereign country like Ukraine."
—Acyn (@Acyn) February 28, 2022
In recent weeks, and in increasingly forceful terms, Griffin has fact-checked a series of guests on the show.
On Saturday she questioned the credentials of retired Brig. Gen. Don Bolduc who had criticised President Joe Biden for not stepping up US military involvement.
"Clearly, Brigadier General Bolduc is not a student of history, he's a politician, he ran for Senate in New Hampshire and failed.
"He's not a military strategist, and to suggest that the US would put indirect fire or special operations or CIA on the ground to give Putin any sort of excuse to broaden this conflict is extremely dangerous talk at a time like this," said Griffin.
Griffin has previously pushed back at other claims being promoted on Fox News.
While some hosts sought to dismiss reports in 2020 that President Donald Trump had insulted military veterans, Griffin confirmed that the claims were true, leading Trump to call for her to be fired.