Overview
- During an Oval Office press session on Wednesday, the president interrupted discussion of the DOJ fund to call CNN “a very corrupt organization,” label Kaitlan Collins a “corrupt reporter,” and say she “never smiles” and has “hatred in her eyes.”
- Collins told viewers the president’s initial criticism began before she had asked a question, and she later tried to follow up by asking whether the $1.8 billion fund was dead or merely on hold.
- Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche had told lawmakers the Justice Department was not moving forward with the proposed $1.8 billion anti‑weaponization fund, which was the policy issue that prompted the Oval Office exchange.
- CNN issued a formal defense of Collins calling her an exceptional journalist, and journalists and former White House staffers—including Sarah Matthews and Anderson Cooper—publicly condemned the president’s remarks as sexist and inappropriate for the office.
- The episode fits a documented pattern of the president singling out female reporters during press events and could heighten scrutiny of White House press conduct and administration relations with mainstream news organizations.