Overview
- The exchange happened Feb. 3 in the Oval Office shortly after Trump signed a bill to end a partial government shutdown.
- Kaitlan Collins pressed Trump on the DOJ’s new Epstein files, noting references to Elon Musk and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as analysts flagged more than 40 redaction failures that exposed sensitive details.
- Trump said he had not read the files, asserted the mentions of his associates were “fine,” and urged the country to move on from the matter.
- He cut off Collins with personal insults, calling her “the worst reporter,” criticizing her for “not smiling,” and accusing CNN of dishonesty.
- Reporters were ushered out as he repeated the remark, CNN publicly defended Collins as an exceptional journalist, and coverage framed the incident within Trump’s pattern of targeting female reporters.