President Donald Trump has lashed out at yet another female reporter, accusing her of being obnoxious after she questioned him about the administration’s lethal boat strikes.
The angry tirade occurred as Trump led a White House roundtable on Monday. He occasionally looked like he was struggling to stay awake as he announced a $12 million bailout for farmers who have been hurt by his tariff policies.
But as he took questions from the press, the 79-year-old president was asked by ABC reporter Rachel Scott if he would order Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth to release the full video of a “double tap” strike against an alleged drug boat that took place on September 2.
The contentious decision to blow up the boat has come under increased scrutiny after the military killed two survivors who were clinging to the burning, capsized vessel, prompting claims of potential war crimes.
Despite Trump saying last week that he would have “no problem” releasing the video, the president backtracked on Monday, telling Scott: “I didn’t say that. You said that, I didn’t say that. Whatever Hegseth wants to do is OK with me.”
But when the ABC journalist pressed Trump further, the president reverted to form by attacking her.
“You are the most obnoxious reporter in the whole place,” he said. “Let me just tell you, you are an obnoxious, a terrible—actually a terrible—reporter. And it’s always the same thing with you.
“I told you, whatever Pete wants to do is OK with me.”
The president’s comments are the latest salvo against female reporters merely doing their job.
Last month, he referred to Bloomberg News correspondent Catherine Lucey as a “piggy” during a clash onboard Air Force One.
Lucey had asked about the Epstein files, quizzing Trump on why he simply wouldn’t release them “if there’s nothing incriminating” in them.
The president then pointed at her and said: “Quiet. Quiet, piggy.”
The next day, during an Oval Office meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump lashed out at ABC White House correspondent Mary Bruce after she also asked questions about the Epstein firestorm.
In addition, Bruce quizzed Trump about family business interests in Saudi Arabia and asked Salman about the death of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered and dismembered by Saudi agents in 2018.
“You’re a terrible person and a terrible reporter,” Trump told Bruce, while suggesting that ABC should have its broadcast license revoked.
“As far as the Epstein files go, I have nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein. I threw him out of my club many years ago because I thought he was a sick pervert.”
And on Saturday, the president took aim at CNN host Kaitlan Collins for pointing out the rising cost of his White House new ballroom.
“Caitlin Collin’s of Fake News CNN, always Stupid and Nasty, asked me why the new Ballroom was costing more money than originally thought one year ago,” he wrote in a lengthy Truth Social rant, misspelling her name in the process.
But the lethal boat strikes have become an increasingly challenging issue for the administration, with many critics now viewing them as unlawful killings.
At least 22 strikes have taken place since the first attack in September, resulting in at least 87 fatalities.
But while the administration justifies the attacks as part of its war on “narco terrorists,” it has never provided proof to substantiate its allegations of drug trafficking.
Growing concerns emerged last week, when a small group of lawmakers viewed the footage of the September 2 strike and the Navy admiral who oversaw it revealed the vessel was not headed to the U.S., contradicting Trump’s earlier claims.
Asked last week if he would release the full video so Americans could understand what had happened, Trump said: “I don’t know what they have, but whatever they have we’d certainly release, no problem.”
On Monday, however, he claimed he never said this and deferred to Hegseth to make the decision.
Hegseth said on Saturday that the footage was being reviewed, but he did not commit to releasing it.
The post Sleepy Trump, 79, Unleashes Grumpy Attack on Female Reporter appeared first on The Daily Beast.
