President Donald Trump lashed out at ABC News reporter Mary Bruce on Tuesday in the Oval Office when she asked him why he didn't just release the investigation files on accused trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
"It's not the question that I mind," Trump claimed. "It's your attitude. I think you are a terrible reporter. It's the way you ask these questions. You start off with a man who's highly respected, asking him an insubordinate question."
The president's outburst promped a wave of criticism from various journalists and experts across social media.
Being insubordinate is typically a characterization that means someone is "disobedient to orders." It's a definition that inspired former Chicago Sun-Times editor Mark Jacob to comment, "The press doesn't work for you, a--hole. I'll bet you can't guess that ABC reporter was a woman. He hates tough questions from a woman. Because he's a sexist pig."
"I’m not going to say what the question was because I think it’s worth turning up the volume to hear for yourself," encouraged New York Times national correspondent Mike Baker.
Alaska Public Radio correspondent Liz Ruskin pointed out that Trump made the same comment about a reporter who asked the Saudi crown prince about the murder and dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi, as Trump also called that reporter "insubordinate."
"A lot of people don't like that gentleman that you're talking about," Trump said at the time.
Longtime CNBC and NBC News reporter Carl Quintanilla remarked, "Calling the ABC reporter’s question 'insubordinate' explains everything about how Trump sees press freedom."
"We fought a war to ensure we could ask insubordinate questions of our own leaders, to say nothing of foreign monarchs," said national security lawyer Bradley P. Moss on Bluesky.
Self-described MAGA hunter Ron Smith commented, "Trump has an epic meltdown when pressed by a reporter on Epstein."
University of Virginia Center for Politics director Larry Sabato also pointed out that later in his remarks Trump said "he wants the 'license taken from ABC.'"
"This is what panic looks like," political analyst Brian Allen wrote on X. "A president who can’t answer a basic question about Epstein without lashing out at reporters is a president who’s hiding something."
"Mr President, why wait for 'your' FCC to pull the license? Why not just take a cue from your guest and chop up all the ABC reporters?" asked "Kagro in the Morning" host David Walman.