The scrutiny from the president is noteworthy given his reportedly cozy relationship with Fox News and his routine praise of its employees, which he’s offered on social media and in public .

“Hard to believe @FoxNews is wasting airtime on Mayor Pete, as Chris Wallace likes to call him,” Trump wrote, referring to one of the channel’s moderate hosts. “Fox is moving more and more to the losing (wrong) side in covering the Dems.”

President Donald Trump unleashed a Twitter tirade against Fox News on Sunday, taking shots at the outlet’s coverage of Democratic presidential candidates, namely South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg .

....who got them there. Chris Wallace said, “I actually think, whether you like his opinions or not, that Mayor Pete has a lot of substance...fascinating biography.” Gee, he never speaks well of me - I like Mike Wallace better...and Alfred E. Newman will never be President!

Unlike some Democrats, Buttigieg has expressed an openness to Fox News appearances and held a town hall discussion with Wallace on the channel Sunday.

In March, the candidate stressed the need for his fellow party members to appear on the channel, pointing out that elections “are supposed to be about our whole country” and “we can’t just concentrate on those areas where people, for the most part, already agree with us.”

A handful of other 2020 Democratic hopefuls have also taken interviews on Fox News, including Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) and Kamala Harris (Calif.). Former Maryland Rep. John Delaney, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and entrepreneur Andrew Yang have also made appearances this year.

In April, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) participated in a town hall discussion with the outlet, taking the opportunity to speak out against Trump while talking to viewers.

However, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) refused to hold a town hall of her own on the outlet, and Harris reportedly opted out as well.

The willingness of Democratic candidates to engage in certain media opportunities with Fox News is at odds with the Democratic National Committee’s stance on the outlet, which it plans to bar from hosting or televising its party’s primary debates.

Presented with a chance to reconsider the decision in April, DNC Chairman Tom Perez declined, telling Bill Hemmer during an appearance on the network, “I don’t have faith in your leadership at Fox News at the senior levels.”