Karoline Leavitt knocked back over 'falsely called racist' question

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared stunned when a reporter asked her for examples of President Donald Trump falsely being called a racist.

The president this week used his statement on the death of Reverend Jesse Jackson to argue that he is not a racist.

“Despite the fact that I am falsely and consistently called a Racist by the Scoundrels and Lunatics on the Radical Left, Democrats ALL, it was always my pleasure to help Jesse along the way,” he wrote.

On Wednesday, a reporter asked, "Where or when does the president believe he's been falsely called racist?"

Leavitt replied, "You're kidding, right?"

"I will pull you plethora of examples," she said, vowing to get her team "going through the internet of radical Democrats throughout the years ... who have accused this president falsely of being a racist, and I'm sure there's many people in this room and on network television, across the country, who have accused him of the same."

"In fact, I know that because I've seen it with my own eyes," she said, before noting that Trump is hosting a Black History Month celebration later on Wednesday.

Trump, she said, will "talk about how his policies are advancing opportunity and prosperity for all Americans through record tax cuts, through the Trump accounts that all Americans can access regardless of race."

"These are a great thing," she continued, before noting that the president "has also awarded hundreds of millions of dollars in additional funding to strengthen educational outcomes at historically Black colleges and universities, across the country."

She also said that Trump is "protecting the hard-earned benefits of the 2.4 million Black veterans who honorably served in our nation's armed forces by reducing the Black backlog of veterans waiting for their VA benefits, and for their home loans through the Department of Veterans Affairs."

"So, there is a lot this president has done for all Americans, regardless of race, and he has, absolutely, been falsely called and smeared as a racist, and I'm happy to provide you those receipts," she added.

Reporter: The president said despite the fact that I am falsely consistently called a racist… Where or when does the president believe that he has been falsely called a racist?
Leavitt: You are kidding, right? pic.twitter.com/gcyrS3rV11
— Acyn (@Acyn) February 18, 2026