On the March 3 edition of Newsmax’s prime-time show Finnerty, host Rob Finnerty made some critical comments regarding President Donald Trump’s war with Iran. His remarks are surprising given Newsmax’s consistent stance of supporting Trump’s agenda and interests, and breaks with the general support for the war among other Newsmax’s prime-time hosts.
The first segment of Finnerty’s show presented a series of chyrons noting that the conflict is “not helping Trump’s popularity” and stating that there is “no real plan for ending” the war.
“Over 77 million Americans voted for Donald Trump because he was not only the America-first president, but for the first time we had a campaign where ‘no new wars’ became a central theme of an election,” the host declared, before playing clips of Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard repeating that slogan on the campaign trail in 2024. Finerty continued, “And after 14 months, that is exactly what we have — a new war.”
Finnerty also directly contradicted the Trump administration by saying, “Was Iran an imminent threat to the United States on Saturday morning? It absolutely was not. The answer is no. I don’t care who says that it was — they were not.” He further criticized Newsmax competitor Fox News, calling the network’s pro-war coverage “ridiculous.”
Later in the show, Finnerty interviewed former Vice President Mike Pence over his longtime support for attacking Iran. He began by asking Pence, “Are you being paid by Iranian opposition groups to push this regime change in Iran?” (Pence replied, “Oh, heavens no.”) The Newsmax host concluded the sometimes contentious interview by saying “I think regular, everyday Americans are more concerned about paying the bills” and “have had enough of foreign entanglements.”
Finnerty’s criticism did not go so far as to completely break with the Trump administration’s policy toward Iran. But his marginally critical stance makes him stand out on Newsmax, and brings him closer into the orbit of other right-wing personalities who are condemning the president’s new war.
