Overview
- During an Oval Office spray after he signed a bill honoring the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team, President Trump told NBC’s Yamiche Alcindor to be “nice and easy” and called her “very aggressive.”
- Alcindor pressed Trump about newly released photos from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate; Trump said he had not seen them, noted Epstein had photos with “everybody,” and added, “I know nothing about it.”
- Earlier in the exchange, Alcindor asked about U.S. intentions toward Venezuelan oil assets following a tanker seizure, and Trump replied that it would not be “very smart” to disclose plans.
- White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson defended Trump’s tone, saying he is not politically correct and that voters value his “transparency.”
- The incident fits recent coverage of Trump’s harsh language toward women reporters, including telling Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey to be “quiet piggy,” calling another reporter “stupid,” and threatening ABC’s broadcast license after a question from Mary Bruce, with past run-ins involving Alcindor dating back to 2020 and September.