After NYT story about Fox, Carlson trying to do Trumpism without him, Trump says, 'I don't think so'

Former President Donald Trump thinks he’s a brand unto himself and that imitators – and naysayers – cannot compete with him in the arena of politics and political news. 

"What Fox [News] is trying to do is have Trumpism without Trump," the former president said while headlining a GOP candidates rally in Nebraska on Sunday.

He was referring to The New York Times' lengthy, multi-part story published this past weekend arguing the cable network's opinion host Tucker Carlson has attempted to brand himself and his eponymous opinion show by carrying forth Trump's views now that he's out of office. 

"That was in a paper today. ... Who likes Trumpism without Trump. ...  Does anybody? I don't think so," the former president said to a round of boos.

Immediately afterward, Trump identified the newspaper and said while reading from a teleprompter: "Even The New York Times said today in a major article 'Segments featuring Fox’s own reporters consistently drew low ratings, especially if they were covering stories the audience deemed avoidable and unfavorable to Trump.' 

"So if they took a story that was unfavorable to Trump, the ratings went down," he said. "Do I love the people? I love the people, and they love me."

The story names at least two news reporters essentially forced out after on-air reports on Trump that audiences found unfavorable.

Reporter Nicholas Confessore wrote the story in three parts including Part Two titled: "How Tucker Carlson Reshaped Fox News – and Became Trump's Heir."

" 'Tucker Carlson Tonight,' the host and his producer decided [they] would embrace Trumpism, not Trump. The show would grasp the emotional core of Mr. Trump's allure," Confessore wrote in that segment.