Mike Pompeo: Trump’s former secretary of state joins Fox News

Mike Pompeo, the former secretary of state under Donald Trump, will officially join Fox News.

The country’s former head diplomat is the latest Trump administration appointee to join the network after former press secretary Kayleigh McEnany was named co-host of “Outnumbered”.

He will make his first appearance on Fox & Friends this Friday and contribute analysis across all of Fox News Media’s platforms, the network said.

The partnership comes in the wake of Fox News losing ground to pro-Trump competitors Newsmax and OANN following the last election, while Mr Pompeo has been touted as a potential Republican candidate in the 2024 race.

Mr Pompeo said in a statement: “As a now-former diplomat and member of Congress, and in this new role at Fox News Media, I intend to give viewers a candid, no-nonsense look at geopolitics, international relations and the America First policies that helped chart the course for unprecedented American prosperity and security.”

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He joins other Trump alumni at the network including former economic adviser Larry Kudlow, who hosts a Fox Business programme, the ex-president’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump, named as a contributor, and the one-off contribution by ex-vice president Mike Pence, who did narration duty on a Rush Limbaugh documentary.

After some Fox News viewers tuned out during the final weeks of the past presidency to more pro-Trump outlets, the network has since clawed back primetime viewership with hosts Tucker Carlson and Greg Gutfeld. While Mr Gutfeld’s late-night comedy show bombed on Twitter, it drew in 1.69 million viewers to beat rivals on CNN and MSNBC, according to Deadline.

Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott said Mr Pompeo will appear as a contributor across Fox News and Fox Business Network in daytime and primetime.

“Mike Pompeo is one of America's most recognised and respected voices on foreign policy and national security issues. I look forward to his contributions across our range of platforms to share his distinct perspective with our millions of viewers,” she said.