Trump shares Republican senator's phone number in feud over time switch
Trump pressed Cotton to support permanent daylight saving time and shared a number he said belonged to the senator.
SOURCE CHECK
TAP FOR WHYCredibility rates Yahoo News, which republished this story. The other scores rate the article itself.
The article is Reuters reporting distributed on Yahoo News, with a wire-service dateline, named reporters and editors, and direct accounts of the participants’ statements. Reuters has established reporting standards and a strong record of original reporting.
- Source type — Reuters is a major international wire service with established reporting standards.
- Author attribution — The article identifies Reuters reporters and editors, despite the Yahoo page listing no author.
- Editorial standards — The reporting includes direct statements and notes uncertainty about whether the number belonged to Cotton.
The report quotes both Trump and Cotton, includes a check of the phone number, and gives the House and Senate context. It offers limited independent evidence about public support for the change and no comment from Cotton’s or Thune’s offices.
HOW WE SCORE ↗The story gives substantial space to both Trump’s case and Cotton’s explanation, and it notes uncertainty about the phone number. It provides limited broader evidence about the competing policy arguments or public opinion.
- Counterarguments presented — Trump’s arguments for the change and Cotton’s objection about winter sunrises are both included.
- Source diversity — The report includes statements from Trump, Cotton and Kennedy, but relies mainly on political figures’ claims.
- Omitted context — It offers little independent analysis or evidence about the effects of year-round daylight saving time.
The report uses largely neutral language and presents statements from Trump and Cotton without endorsing either position. It also includes relevant context about the bill’s status and Cotton’s reelection race.
- Language tone — Mostly descriptive wording; the headline and body report the phone-number post and dispute without adopting a partisan judgment.
- Source selection — Quotes Trump and Cotton, and includes Kennedy’s view of the bill’s Senate prospects.
- Framing — Presents the disagreement as a dispute over permanent daylight saving time and includes the bill’s legislative status.
Republished with credit
Republished from Reuters, with credit to the original publisher.
120 stories · 95–96 · updated Oct 4, 2026
This is Reuters's own score, and this article is credited to Reuters. The host score in the Source Check is Yahoo News's.
President Donald Trump shared a phone number he said belonged to Sen. Tom Cotton amid their dispute over making daylight saving time permanent. Cotton defended his opposition, while the House has passed the measure and its Senate prospects remain uncertain.
Trump urged people to call a number he said belonged to Cotton, who opposes the Sunshine Protection Act. When Reuters called the number, it reached a voicemail that did not identify itself as Cotton’s. Trump argued that permanent daylight saving time would benefit groups including golfers, and he cited public safety; Cotton said winter mornings would leave children going to school in darkness.
Cotton responded that Congress had made daylight saving time permanent before and later repealed it after winter sunrises became too late. The House passed the bill in July. Sen. John Kennedy called it “dead as disco” and said he did not expect Majority Leader John Thune to bring it to a vote.
Community verdict
23 VOTES
People in this story
SWIPE →President who posted a number he said belonged to Cotton and urged people to call it
Arkansas senator opposing the Sunshine Protection Act and responding to Trump’s posts
Cotton's version of this story ↗
Senate majority leader whom Kennedy said was unlikely to bring the bill to a vote
Louisiana senator who criticized the bill and predicted Thune would not bring it to a vote
Part of a bigger story
50 OUTLETSOutlets agree that Trump posted a number he identified as Sen. Tom Cotton’s and urged Arkansans to contact him in support of permanent daylight saving time. The House had passed the measure, but it remained stalled in the Senate. Left-leaning outlets focus on the phone-number post as a pressure tactic and its fallout, often criticizing Trump’s conduct. Center outlets largely recount the policy dispute, Cotton’s objections, and the phone-number post in descriptive terms. Right-leaning outlets emphasize Trump’s push to advance the bill and Cotton’s opposition, while also reporting the post and criticism it drew.
- ARTICLES
- 75
- OUTLETS
- 50
- AVG CRED
- 68
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