Former President Donald Trump has defended himself against criticism over his recent phone call with Fox News, following Vice President Kamala Harris's Democratic convention speech. Trump took to Truth Social to clarify the circumstances surrounding the call, claiming that he was asked by Bret Baier of Fox News to provide a critique of Harris's speech after she finished. Trump's response comes amid accusations of rambling and oversharing during the phone call.

According to Trump's statement on Truth Social, Baier contacted him just prior to Harris's convention speech and requested his participation in a post-speech analysis. Trump agreed to the request, leading to his dial-in on Thursday to speak with Baier and Martha MacCallum. However, during the call, Trump seemingly accidentally pressed buttons on his phone's keypad, which resulted in what some deemed as a lengthy and digressive monologue about Harris's speech.

Baier and MacCallum attempted to intervene and interject during Trump's monologue, but the former president continued to speak. After approximately 10 minutes, the call was abruptly ended by the anchors, who informed Trump that the network had run out of time.

The phone call itself garnered attention after New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd mentioned it in an op-ed, describing it as a "scream-of-consciousness" rant wherein Trump filibustered Baier and MacCallum. Dowd further highlighted that Baier interrupted Trump to transition to the Greg Gutfeld comedy show.

Responding to Dowd's depiction of the call, Trump took to social media again, vehemently denying that he initiated the calls himself. He emphasized that it was media outlets reaching out to him, contrary to what Dowd had claimed. Trump asserted that his popularity and high viewership ratings were the reasons why media outlets constantly sought his participation.

Trump's statement also included a continuation of his criticism of Harris's speech. He labeled it as "nonspecific and weak," citing the lack of mention of prominent issues such as fracking, crime, and inflation. Furthermore, he criticized the delivery, giving it a rating of C+ and stating that there were too many rushed "thank you's" at the beginning of the speech.

The Hill approached Fox News for comment regarding Trump's claim, but it is unclear at this time whether the network has responded.

As criticism continues to surround Trump's phone call with Fox News, the former president remains uncompromising in his defense, reiterating his assertion that he is in high demand by media outlets and asserting his status as a "Ratings Machine."