President Trump isn’t the only member of the family who knows how to deliver when it comes to television ratings.
Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law, dominated the cable competition in her debut as host of “My View with Lara Trump,” drawing 2.4 million total viewers for the “most-watched program of the weekend,” according to Nielsen ratings released Tuesday by the Fox News Channel.
She even beat the college basketball game on ESPN with her premier featuring a line-up of top Trump administration officials, including Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
“Mrs. Trump notched the most watched 9 PM/ET hour on a Saturday night since breaking news coverage of the assassination attempt of President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024,” said the Fox press release.
“My View with Lara Trump” was the No. 2 non-sports telecast last weekend in the 25-54 demographic, outpacing shows like Bravo’s “Real Housewives of the Potomac” and “Married to Medicine,” as well as HBO Prime’s “The White Lotus.”
“In total viewers, Mrs. Trump beat every college basketball game (1.5 million total viewers) and NBA game on ESPN (1.6 million total viewers),” said the network.
The show’s success out of the gate comes with the right-tilting Fox News Channel already lapping the field in its daytime and evening programming.
Fox also announced Tuesday that this month represents its highest-rated February in its history in total viewership, up 50% from last year overall and 68% in the 25-54 demographic.
Fox routinely trounces the cable news competition, and Mrs. Trump’s show was no exception, outdrawing CNN’s “Have I Got News for You” by 366% with total viewers and 230% in the coveted 25-54 age demographic.
The show outpaced MSNBC by 502% with total viewers and 1606% with the 24-54 demographic.
Those cheering her boffo premiere include her husband Eric Trump, who took to X on Tuesday to trumpet the results.
Not everyone was impressed. Left-tilting commentators mocked the program as a Trump lovefest aimed at improving his standing with women.
“All three of Lara’s guests fawned over the president, making sure to stress just how supportive he is of them as women and as, at least in Leavitt’s case, new moms attempting to juggle having both a family and a career,” said the Daily Beast writer Catherine Bouris in a Sunday review.
The New Yorker called her show the “new Trump-family megaphone,” while UnHerd asked whether her program was a “campaign in disguise.”
“The debut episode revealed a carefully crafted blend of gentle family propaganda and savvy political positioning,” said Oliver Bateman in Sunday’s UnHerd review.
Mrs. Trump, the former Republican National Committee co-chair, had other options after her father-in-law’s November win. She was seen as a leading contender for the Florida Senate seat vacated by Sen. Marco Rubio when he was confirmed as Secretary of State.
She removed herself from Senate consideration in December.
Earlier this month, Fox announced that she had been hired to helm the weekend show.
Also scoring for Fox was “One Nation with Brian Kilmeade,” which drew 1.7 million total viewers in its new 10 p.m. ET timeslot, increasing its ratings by 124% in the 25-54 demographic and 70% in overall viewers versus the overall 2024 average.
Host Mark Levin’s “Life, Liberty & Levin” also continued to beat the competition at CNN and MSNBC, drawing nearly 1.8 million total viewers on Saturday and 1.8 million on Sunday.
“Both nights, the show ranked among the top five most-watched programs,” said Fox.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.