Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace trashed President Donald Trump as a threat to the free press in a speech given Wednesday at the Newseum–the media’s shrine to its hubris set in the nation’s capital that is closing this month due to lack of public interest. Wallace said, “I believe that President Trump is engaged in the most direct sustained assault on freedom of the press in our history.”

At ‘Celebrating the First Amendment and the Newseum’ event at The Newseum. Fox News host Chris Wallace: “I believe that President Trump is engaged in the most direct sustained assault on freedom of the press in our history.” pic.twitter.com/2sMGwxi98O — David Smith (@SmithInAmerica) December 12, 2019

Wallace’s speech was reported by the Guardian:

…“I believe that President Trump is engaged in the most direct sustained assault on freedom of the press in our history,” Wallace said to applause at the Newseum, a media museum in Washington, on Wednesday night. TRENDING: BREAKING: Multiple Injuries After Car Plows Through Crowd of Trump Supporters in Yorba Linda, California (VIDEO) “He has done everything he can to undercut the media, to try and delegitimise us, and I think his purpose is clear: to raise doubts when we report critically about him and his administration that we can be trusted. Back in 2017, he tweeted something that said far more about him than it did about us: ‘The fake news media is not my enemy. It is the enemy of the American people.’” Wallace recalled that retired admiral Bill McRaven, a navy Seal for 37 years, had described Trump’s sentiment as maybe “the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime” because, unlike even the Soviet Union or Islamic terrorism, it undermines the US constitution. The veteran broadcaster added: “Let’s be honest, the president’s attacks have done some damage. A Freedom Forum Institute poll, associated here with the Newseum, this year found that 29% of Americans, almost a third of all of us, think the first amendment goes too far. And 77%, three quarters, say that fake news is a serious threat to our democracy.”

The Newseum tweeted this observation from Wallace warning reporters, ““We are not participants in what we cover, we are observers trying to be objective witnesses. We shouldn’t be drawn into taking sides. We’re not as good at it & we’re abandoning the special role that was created for us in this democracy,” – Chris Wallace, anchor, @FoxNewsSunday”

“We are not participants in what we cover, we are observers trying to be objective witnesses. We shouldn’t be drawn into taking sides. We’re not as good at it & we’re abandoning the special role that was created for us in this democracy,” – Chris Wallace, anchor, @FoxNewsSunday — Newseum (@Newseum) December 12, 2019

The same day Wallace trashed Trump, Fox News Sunday announced Wallace will be interviewing Trump antagonists Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA)–the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee who is leading the impeachment of Trump–and former FBI Director James Comey who was fired by Trump.

UPDATE: C-SPAN video posted: