Trump and Fox work to repair strained relationship

William Cummings | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Trump and Fox work to repair strained relationship Donald Trump and Fox News are taking steps to repair their rocky relationship after the presidential candidate hurled a slew of controversial criticisms at the network for what he perceived as unfair questions directed at him in last week's debate.

Donald Trump and Fox News are taking steps to repair their rocky relationship after the presidential candidate hurled a slew of controversial criticisms at the network for what he perceived as unfair questions directed at him in last week's debate by moderator Megyn Kelly.

Trump, who continues to leads the GOP presidential field in the polls, accused Fox of treating him unfairly and tweeted that Kelly "really bombed" in the debate, and that she "was not very good or professional." He then told CNN that Kelly, who he said was upset by his response to her question on his history of harsh statements toward women, had “blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever."

Fox's chairman, Roger Ailes, called Trump Monday for what he described as a "blunt but cordial conversation," aimed at clearing the air. Trump appears to have been placated by the chat, saying in a tweet, "“Roger Ailes just called. He is a great guy & assures me that ‘Trump’ will be treated fairly on @FoxNews. His word is always good!”

“Donald Trump and I spoke today," Ailes said in a statement. "We discussed our concerns, and I again expressed my confidence in Megyn Kelly.” Ailes called Kelly “a brilliant journalist” whom he supports “100 percent.”

Ailes said he also assured Trump “that we will continue to cover this campaign with fairness & balance.”

After Ailes assurances, Trump agreed to appear on both the morning show Fox & Friends and Hannity on Tuesday.

Over the weekend, Trump went after both Fox and Kelly, saying Fox "should be ashamed" and "It amazes me that other networks seem to treat me so much better than @FoxNews. I brought them the biggest ratings in history, & I get zip!"

Trump refused to apologize for his attacks on Kelly, and said Kelly was the one who should apologize to him.

Kelly responded Monday saying, "I certainly will not apologize for doing good journalism." Kelly added that she was willing to put the "dustup" behind her. "Mr. Trump, I expect, will continue with what has been a successful campaign thus far. This is a tough business, and it’s time now to move forward."

Contributing: The Associated Press