BAD BLOOD? DONALD TRUMP AND ROGER AILES REPORTEDLY NO LONGER SPEAK

The G.O.P. nominee and former cable news king, longtime friends, have reportedly had a falling out in the midst of the campaign.
BY EMILY JANE FOX

With less than three weeks until Election Day, Donald Trump is dipping in the polls and struggling to get out of a dismal news cycle focused on allegations of sexual assault and a damning audio recording that caught him boasting about grabbing women’s genitals.

But as New York magazine’s Gabriel Sherman revealed on stage at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit on Wednesday morning, Trump has lost one key ally: Roger Ailes. The former Fox News boss had reportedly served as an advisor to Trump throughout the campaign. He was said to have played a particularly important role as of late, helping him prepare for the presidential debates.

That's all changed now, according to Sherman and Vanity Fair contributing editor Sarah Ellison. The reason for the fallout depends on who you ask.

“Ailes’s camp said Ailes learned that Trump couldn’t focus—surprise, surprise—and that advising him was a waste of time,” Sherman said. “These debate prep sessions weren’t going anywhere.”