President Donald Trump rebuked ABC News White House correspondent Mary Bruce on Tuesday after she asked why he had not simply directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release all government records related to Jeffrey Epstein. The exchange occurred during an Oval Office meeting with the Saudi crown prince, just hours before the House of Representatives was set to vote on whether to make the Epstein files public.
Bruce asked why Trump had not used his authority to order their release, prompting Trump to criticize her tone and question whether ABC should retain its broadcasting license. He accused her of being a terrible reporter and characterized her question as “horrible” and “insubordinate.”
Trump then suggested that somebody “psyched” her up at ABC and repeated that he did not object to the substance of the question, but to her “attitude.”
FCC Chairman’s Prior Warning About ABC Provides Backdrop
Trump’s comments came weeks after FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said on The Benny Johnson Show that ABC could face consequences if it failed to discipline late-night host Jimmy Kimmel for false statements regarding the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk. Kimmel’s subsequent three-day suspension angered Democrats, who accused Carr of seeking to remove Kimmel for political reasons.
Trump’s mention of the FCC on Tuesday raised the stakes of his confrontation with Bruce, as he argued that ABC News was among the “perpetrators” of what he described as a Democratic “hoax” regarding Epstein.
Trump Again Denies Epstein Ties, Points to Clinton and Summers
The president reiterated that he had “nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein,” maintaining he expelled Epstein from Mar-a-Lago in the early 2000s because he considered him a “sick pervert.” Trump contrasted his distance from Epstein with allegedly close associations between Epstein and former President Bill Clinton and former Harvard President Larry Summers.
He insisted he had never visited Epstein’s island, and framed the focus on Epstein as an effort by Democrats to divert attention from his successes.
House Democrats Release Epstein Documents
Before the confrontation, House Democrats released documents containing emails from Epstein alleging that Trump knew about his criminal activity and sat in his home with one of his victims. The documents redacted the name of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre, who stated in 2011 that she never witnessed or heard of Trump committing any criminal wrongdoing.
More Epstein victims told NBC News in September that they had never seen Trump do anything illegal during his interactions with Epstein. Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s longtime associate who is currently imprisoned, said in a July 24 deposition that Trump was a “gentleman in all respects” and denied ever seeing him behave inappropriately.
Trump Urges Release of Files While Blasting GOP Signatories
After months of resistance, Trump has reversed course, publicly calling for the release of the Epstein files, writing on Truth Social on Sunday that Republicans should move forward because they have “nothing to hide.”
A High-Stakes Vote and a Highly Charged Exchange
Tuesday’s clash with Bruce underscored the political volatility surrounding the effort to force disclosure of Epstein records.
Bruce’s question — and Trump’s reaction — signaled how central the Epstein documents issue has become in Washington, with both parties bracing for the implications of whatever the files ultimately reveal.
READ NEXT: ABC Debate Moderators Only Fact-Checked Trump
She sat around for four years with her finger in her nose without asking Biden the same question. Golly, I wonder why that is.
MTG had input in changing Trump’s decision.