Sean Hannity Breaks Promise, Appears Onstage With Trump at Rally

"I had no idea you were going to invite me up here," said Hannity, who had pledged he would not campaign on Monday night.

On Monday morning, Fox News host Sean Hannity, the network's biggest star, pledged to his 3.84 million Twitter followers that he would not appear onstage during a Make America Great Rally that evening with his friend President Trump.

On Monday evening, an hour or so after interviewing him at the rally, Hannity was called to the stage and appeared next to the president.

"In spite of reports, I will be doing a live show from Cape Girardeau and interviewing President Trump before the rally," Hannity had written on Twitter. "To be clear, I will not be on stage campaigning with the President. I am covering final rally for my show. Something I have done in every election in the past."

"Sean Hannity, come on up. Sean Hannity," Trump said at the rally in Missouri, his third of the day.

Hannity appeared surprised by the invitation, which followed an appearance by conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh. "I had no idea you were going to invite me up here," Hannity said.

A Fox News spokesperson did not immediately respond when asked about Hannity's appearance, though the network released a statement on Tuesday calling it a "distraction."

Hannity began with a knock on the media: "By the way, all those people in the back are fake news," he said.

Speaking to Trump, a close friend, Hannity said, "The one thing that has made and defined your presidency more than anything else: 'Promises Made, Promises Kept.' 4.5 million new American jobs, 4.3 million Americans off food stamps, 4 million Americans out of poverty, and we're not dropping cash loads, cargo planes of cash to Iranian mullahs that chant, 'Death to America.' Mr. President, thank you.'"

Hannity was followed by his Fox News colleague Judge Jeanine Pirro. "There's a woman on Saturday night that treats us, very very well," Trump said. "And she does it with love and with passion for the country. Not for me, it's not a passion for me. It's a passion for the country. And I really believe it's a passion for you."

Trump said Pirro "has got viewership you wouldn't believe" on Saturday nights.