Fox News says the decision to ditch Lara Trump is “solely” because her father-in-law, Donald Trump, is running for president. The evidence suggests otherwise.

From The Washington Post (with my emphases added):

A source with knowledge of the situation said the decision to sever ties with Lara Trump stemmed solely from the network’s ban on political activity, though the policy generally applies to commentators who announce their own campaign runs, such as former Fox News contributor Sarah Sanders — who left the network when she announced her bid for governor of Arkansas — rather than to relatives of announced candidates. In November 2014, Ben Carson also left his role as a Fox News contributor when he was pondering a run for the presidency.

Post reporter Jeremy Barr further pointed out that Lara Trump was openly considering a run for the U.S. Senate at the time Fox hired her, though she ultimately did not. “She also does not appear to be working on the Trump 2024 campaign in an official capacity, though she served as a campaign adviser for his 2020 run,” Barr said.

But Fox did not seem to have the same standard for Sarah Sanders' father, Mike Huckabee. She formally launched her campaign to run for Arkansas governor in January, 2021 but her father remained as a paid contributor for Fox through August of that year.

There’s also the fact that the Murdochs obviously want to be done with Donald Trump (except when it’s expedient to paint him as a liberal victim). Noting that after the midterms, several Fox commentators expressed displeasure with Trump and a desire to move forward with someone new, Barr added:

One voice that notably dissented from the chorus of Trump skepticism was Lara Trump, who said early on the morning of Nov. 9 that “if there is ever a time people are ready for Donald Trump to come back, it could be right now.” Trump announced his bid less than a week later.

Barr also noted that Lara Trump could continue to appear on Fox as an unpaid guest.

Let’s hope not, though I suspect she will.

For a taste of the kind of bonkers lies Lara Trump spews in her "commentary," you can watch her claim Obamacare has “essentially destroyed” many people’s lives below, from the November 3, 2018 Justice with Judge Jeanine show, which I discussed here. That ludicrous claim obviously didn’t stop Fox from hiring her, in March, 2021.