U.S. President Donald Trump criticized ABC News’ Mary Bruce as a “terrible reporter” on Tuesday (November 19, 2025) and threatened the network’s broadcasting license after she asked him three pointed questions at the White House.
The network’s chief White House correspondent was part of the press allowed into the Oval Office to query the President and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. She questioned Mr. Trump about the propriety of his family’s business dealings in Saudi Arabia while he held the presidency.
Before he could respond, she turned to the Saudi leader with a direct inquiry: “Your Royal Highness, U.S. intelligence has determined that you were involved in the brutal murder of a journalist. Families affected by 9/11 are outraged by your presence in the Oval Office. Why should Americans trust you? And the same to you, Mr. President.”
After asking Ms. Bruce for her affiliation, Mr. Trump branded ABC as “fake news” and defended his family’s business ties in Saudi Arabia.
The President disregarded U.S. intelligence reports suggesting the Prince’s potential involvement in the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a vocal critic of the Saudi regime. He claimed that “many people didn’t like” Khashoggi, who was both a Saudi national and a resident of Virginia.
In response, Prince Mohammed characterized Khashoggi’s death as tragic and “a grave mistake.”
Later, Mr. Trump rebuked Ms. Bruce for posing a “horrible, insubordinate and simply awful” question to the Prince. He criticized her further after a third query regarding the delay in releasing additional details about Jeffrey Epstein’s correspondence until congressional action is taken. “Why wait? Why not release it now?” Ms. Bruce questioned.
“It’s not the question itself that bothers me,” said Mr. Trump. “It’s your attitude. I believe you are a poor journalist. It’s the way you frame these questions.”
After addressing the Epstein issue, he returned to Ms. Bruce, stating that “people see through your deceit.”
“I believe that ABC’s license should be revoked due to the dissemination of fake and misleading news,” he declared. “We have an excellent (FCC) commissioner, the chairman, who should investigate this because when you are consistently 97% negative towards Trump and he still wins by a large margin, it’s evident that your reporting lacks credibility. As a reporter, you lack credibility.”
ABC News refrained from commenting on Mr. Trump’s remarks on Tuesday (November 18, 2025), which referenced FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, the head of the federal agency responsible for licensing local broadcast stations.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg News issued a statement in response to Mr. Trump’s derogatory remarks towards one of its reporters, Catherine Lucey, whom he called “piggy” during a recent question-and-answer session on Air Force One.
“Our White House journalists play a crucial role in asking questions impartially and fearlessly,” Bloomberg News affirmed. “Our focus remains on reporting public interest matters objectively and accurately.”
