Bret Baier will probably say he installed the dozens of solar panels to save on energy bills for his 16,250 square foot home.
Although Fox claims Baier represents the kind of journalistic integrity that makes the network a legit news operation, he has repeatedly proved otherwise. Climate change is another example. In 2021, a Media Matters study found that Baier’s “flagship news” show, Special Report, “featured false or misleading narratives and misinformation” in 851 of the 972 stories related to climate change or the environment in the previous 12 years. That’s 87%. “Many of these same attacks are also heavily promoted by Fox’s opinion shows, which points to the shared talking points of the network’s 'news' division and some of its most toxic prime-time personalities,” Media Matters pointed out.
So, as The Washington Post reported this week, many were surprised to spot those solar panels on the roof of Baier’s Washington, D.C. mansion, just listed for $31.9 million. In an article confirming the 86 solar panels, The Post noted that solar panels “increasingly make economic sense, especially for those who can afford the upfront costs,” irrespective of politics.
If there’s one thing we know about Baier, it’s that he can afford the upfront costs. From Realtor.com:
The host of “Special Report With Bret Baier” and his wife, Amy Baier, recently listed their 16,250-square-foot home for $31.9 million.
If the property fetches the full asking price, it will set a residential sale record for the city.
Baier purchased the property for $5.4 million in 2018. After tearing down the original structure, he reportedly spent $25 million to build the lavish abode over three years.
He and his family moved in last year but have since decided to make a permanent move to Palm Beach, FL.
Besides the custom bar, the top-of-the-line kitchen appliances and butler pantry, Realtor says other amenities include “a screening room; spa and gym; two-story sport court; and golf simulator. When the weather’s nice, you can take your golf game outside to the private chipping and putting green. Then you can enjoy a dip in the 56-foot, heated pool.”
As for the place in Palm Beach? It appears Bret and Amy are downsizing with a $37 million, 7,800 square-foot spread. But that seems to be an upgrade from their other home in Palm Beach, a mere 4,160 sq. ft. place, bought just a year ago, for a mere $12 million and now on the market for $16,495,000.
It's not clear if Baier is planning to retire soon or whether he'll work from his new Palm Beach digs or get some pied-à-terre near Fox's D.C. office.
Baier was outed during the Dominion defamation suit as having pushed for Fox to rescind its call that Arizona had gone for Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Not because the call was wrong but because “it’s hurting us,” Baier wrote in an email to network president Jay Wallace. “The sooner we pull it even if it gives us major egg. And put it back in his column. The better we are. In my opinion.” That’s what passes for “ultimate journalistic integrity” on Fox News.
That’s the same kind of “integrity” that helped Baier buy those multi-million-dollar homes and the solar panels.
You can watch Baier promote complaints that solar panels, care of President Biden’s green initiatives, harm property values in the “heartland” and are “changing their rural way of life at an alarming rate” below, from the May 18, 2023 Special Report. Baier called the report “interesting to watch.”