Days after Donald Trump called a woman journalist “piggy” for questioning him about Jeffrey Epstein, he lashed out at an ABC News reporter during an Oval Office appearance at the White House, where he was hosting Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday.
During the exchange, Trump even threatened ABC’s broadcast license after correspondent Mary Bruce pressed him on conflicts of interest and the Khashoggi murder.
A separate incident involving Bloomberg reporter Catherine Lucey occurred a few days earlier aboard Air Force One but only surfaced on social media on Tuesday. On Friday, Trump pointed his finger at Lucey and told her, “Quiet. Quiet, piggy,” after she pressed him on why he refused to release files related to disgraced sex offender Jeffrey Epstein “if there’s nothing incriminating in the files.”
Tensions flared in the Oval Office on Tuesday as Trump clashed with ABC News reporter Mary Bruce, interrupting pointed questions about Saudi dealings and the Khashoggi murder with a sharp rebuke: “ABC fake news. One of the worst in the business.” The confrontation came during a high-profile visit from Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, where Bruce pressed both the president and the crown prince on controversial business ties and a decades-old journalist assassination.
Trump became visibly upset once more when Bruce inquired about the contentious topic of Epstein. On Tuesday, Congress voted decisively to mandate the disclosure of documents related to the financier, who died by suicide in 2019 while facing charges of sex trafficking."It's not the question that I mind. It's your attitude. I think you are a terrible reporter," Trump shot back at Bruce.
Trump insisted he had “nothing to do” with Epstein, reiterating his claim that the scandal is a “hoax.” He then accused Bruce’s network, saying, “Your crappy company is one of the perpetrators.” Trump went on to urge the head of the U.S. broadcast regulator who has previously challenged ABC over its content to “look at” revoking the network’s license. Turning back to Bruce, he snapped, “No more questions from you.”