The conflict over McDaniel threatens to reverse some of the gains that top network figures believed that it had made to establish some credibility with members of the Republican Party. NBC lobbied hard behind the scenes for a GOP primary debate, dispatching anchor Lester Holt to meet with the RNC as part of the network’s pitch. It worked: NBC was the first non-Fox outlet to secure a debate. And throughout the GOP presidential primary, the television news organization and its digital counterpart broke a number of major stories about the contest, including the news of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign announcement with Elon Musk, and infighting within the major super PAC supporting DeSantis for president.

McDaniel, who was elevated then discarded by Donald Trump, makes an unlikely martyr for a MAGA right that viewed her with suspicion even after she stopped using her middle name, Romney. But even critics like former candidate Vivek Ramaswamy took the opportunity to lambaste the network.

“I would have hoped for a decision other than that one for her first move to be instantly taking a contributorship with that network,” Ramaswamy told Semafor, “but I think it’s very lame of NBC to cower to a mob of people after they did make a decision to not give somebody who they thought was worth giving a voice to. You could debate that question, but once they’ve decided to do it, I think it’s rather lame and pathetic of them to pull it before she had a chance to contribute whatever they thought she had to contribute.”

Stephen Moore, a former top Trump economic aide now at FreedomWorks, called it a “good day for our team, because it makes [Democrats] look ridiculous.” He added that he has no particular view on McDaniel, whom he referred to as “Ronna McDonald” several times during a short telephone interview.

Former Trump chief of staff Mick Mulvaney called the firing “a great move for NBC. It allows them to completely shed their image as a legitimate news outlet, once and for all.”

McDaniel herself was shocked by her abrupt reversal of fortune. One person familiar with the situation told Semafor that CAA warned her on Monday that she likely would need to hire a lawyer to prepare for a contentious exit from the network. It was awkward timing for the former RNC chair, who was traveling for an interview for a separate high level corporate board position which could also be imperiled by the unfolding network drama. Another person close to McDaniel said she did not hear from NBC all day, and learned about her firing from media reports.