President Donald Trump endorsed conservative protests against social distancing measures in three states immediately after Fox News aired a segment on the efforts, dumping gasoline on a movement that threatens the fragile consensus on steps public health experts say are preventing nightmarish death figures from the novel coronavirus.

Beginning at 11:19 a.m. ET, Fox’s America’s Newsroom ran a segment detailing a wave of protests against stay-at-home orders from governors of Michigan, Minnesota, and Virginia. Fox aired a package featuring footage from a protest in Virginia and another in Minnesota, with Fox News correspondent Mike Tobin quoting the group “Liberate Minnesota” calling the stay-at-home order “an overreaction.” Co-anchor Ed Henry then interviewed a Michigan sheriff who is defying Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s order in that state.