The spotlight on Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial race grew even brighter Wednesday morning after Fox & Friends seized on years-old comments by Democratic Socialist candidate Francesca Hong, turning an academic discussion of race into one of the morning’s most talked-about television moments.
The conversation centered on a 2021 interview in which Hong discussed raising her biracial son and reflected on what she described as her own “proximity to whiteness.”
Imagine talking about your own child in terms of “proximity to whiteness.”
This ideology breaks the way people think. pic.twitter.com/1rFCUd9IV7
— Rep. Claudia Tenney (@RepTenney) August 4, 2026
“My proximity to whiteness continues,” Hong said in the resurfaced clip. “My son is biracial. He is half white and half Korean, and I think navigating what his identity is and how people perceive him is always at the back of my mind.”
That prompted an immediate response from Fox & Friends co-host Lawrence Jones.
“Proximity?” Jones quipped. “You slept with the guy!”
The remark sent fellow hosts Ainsley Earhardt and Charlie Hurt into laughter, with Earhardt adding, “They were very close in that moment.”
Jones then argued that many progressive politicians frequently criticize “white privilege” while themselves having interracial marriages or relationships. “I don’t even know what that means—proximity to whiteness,” Earhardt said.
Jones continued by suggesting Americans increasingly care less about race than activists claim. “People love who they love,” he said. “The country is becoming more and more mixed… people don’t care about color the way these activists keep insisting they do.”
The exchange quickly spread across social media, with supporters calling it a humorous critique of progressive identity politics while critics accused Fox of oversimplifying Hong’s comments.
Just a day earlier, the Democratic Socialist candidate struggled during a CNN interview when asked whether she still supported a 2020 social media post calling for Americans to “cancel Thanksgiving” because it celebrated colonialism.
Rather than directly answering yes or no, Hong emphasized her background as a chef and said Thanksgiving can be both a time of community and a painful holiday for some Americans, adding that “views can evolve.” Her answer generated widespread criticism from conservatives and renewed scrutiny of other past social media posts questioning several traditional American holidays.
Hong has also faced questions over previous support for abolishing police departments and her appearance on a fundraising livestream hosted by far-left commentator Hasan Piker. While defending that appearance, Hong said participating on his platform did not mean she endorsed everything he has ever said.
Hong remains one of the leading candidates heading into Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary next week.
Political observers from both parties are closely watching the race because Wisconsin remains one of America’s premier battleground states. After Democratic Socialists celebrated victories in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Denver, Hong’s campaign is widely viewed as the movement’s first major opportunity to prove its message can win statewide in politically divided territory.
Republicans have already spent millions highlighting Hong’s most progressive positions, believing she would be a weaker general-election opponent, while many progressives argue her unapologetic style represents exactly the kind of political change Democratic voters are demanding.
With less than a week before primary voters head to the polls, Hong’s campaign finds itself answering as many questions about old interviews and social media posts as it does about taxes, education or Wisconsin’s economy.
DBS WIRE SOURCES:
- Mediaite – Fox Hosts Crack Up Over Democratic Socialist’s “Proximity to Whiteness” Claim
- Fox News – Wisconsin Democrat Distances Herself From Hasan Piker After Fundraiser Appearance
- New York Post – Wisconsin Socialist Candidate Pressed Over Calls to “Cancel Thanksgiving”
- CBS News – Wisconsin Governor’s Race Puts Democratic Socialist Platform to a Swing-State Test
- Wisconsin Examiner – Poll Shows Hong Leading With Many Democratic Voters Undecided
