McDaniel might sue NBC after it pulls U-turn and fires her

Former Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel is reportedly seeking legal advice after her contract with NBC News was rescinded.

The network announced Tuesday it was cutting ties with Ms. McDaniel, whom it had just hired as a political analyst, after many of NBC’s anchors blasted her.

Politico reported Wednesday that Ms. McDaniel is exploring legal options over her termination. She was reportedly going to make $600,000 as part of a two-year contract and expects to still receive it all since she’s not the one who terminated the contract.

The former RNC head discussed the situation with Bryan Freedman, an entertainment lawyer, about legal options. He has represented other on-air talent fired from networks, such as Megyn Kelly, Chris Cuomo, Don Lemon and Tucker Carlson.

Ms. McDaniel might sue for defamation and a hostile work environment since her short-term colleagues shared their negative opinions of her publicly while she was still an employee.

To take it further, she was never told by NBC News that her contract had been terminated, even as NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde sent an email to staffers informing them that her contract had been dropped and apologized for the decision to hire her.

He said the network brought her on “because of our deep commitment to presenting our audiences with a widely diverse set of viewpoints and experiences, particularly during these consequential times.”

Conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, an ally of Ms. McDaniel, said on Fox News Tuesday that he hasn’t seen “anything this brutal.”

“Ronna is going to sue everyone who defamed her for breach of contract, for intentional infliction of mental distress,” he said. “They’re going to sue for the destruction of her business opportunities that come from being on TV.”

He added, “I think they made a terrible decision, and they allowed the MSNBC bleed to take over their network. The cult has taken over the news division.”

Many of the network’s talent were quick to share their opinions about hiring her.

Chuck Todd, former host of the network’s “Meet the Press,” said the former RNC head has “credibility issues.”

“There’s a reason why there are a lot of journalists at NBC News uncomfortable with this, because many of our professional dealings with the RNC over the last six years have been met with gaslighting, have been met with character assassination,” he said while appearing on his old show Sunday, right after Ms. McDaniel made her debut with an interview in that hour.

Ms. McDaniel stepped down as head of the RNC this year after facing pressure and criticism from Mr. Trump and his supporters. One of the reasons her NBC hiring caused such backlash is because during her time as RNC head she promoted Mr. Trump’s election fraud claims.

Rachel Maddow, a top hose at MSNBC, said on her show Monday that NBC officials had to “reverse their decision.”

Joe Scarborough and his wife, Mika Brzezinski, co-hosts of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” also weighed in Monday, saying they wouldn’t let Ms. McDaniel on the show and called her an “anti-democracy election denier.”