TOI correspondent from Washington: Growing tensions between the Trump White House and the largely liberal Washington press corps reached a flashpoint this week after the MAGA boss directed a crude insult toward a female journalist and threatened to revoke the license of a broadcast network whose reporter asked him tough questions.The first episode unfolded on November 14 on Air Force One when Bloomberg reporter Catherine Lucey, traveling with the President, pressed him on the release of the Epstein files. A clearly irked Trump raised his index finger and snapped: “Quiet! Quiet, piggy!” – a slur that reverberated across the media world.In a subsequent episode at the White House on Tuesday, Trump unloaded on ABC reporter Mary Bruce, who bluntly questioned him about the appropriateness of his family doing business in Saudi Arabia while he is President, and then directed a question to the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman regarding the US. intelligence conclusion that he orchestrated the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.A furious Trump told her not to “embarrass our guest by asking a question like that,” as he erupted at her network ABC, calling it “fake news” and “one of the worst in the business.” When an unflustered Bruce followed up by asking why he should be waiting for Congress to release the Epstein files when he could do it himself, Trump lost his cool, complaining about her “attitude, and calling her a “terrible reporter.” He then wondered if the license of the Bruce’s network ABC should be taken away because “your news is so fake,” going so far as to suggest he would ask the FCC chair to look into it. The latest confrontations and insults fit squarely within Trump’s well-documented playbook of using epithets and bullying to control and dominate media interactions, particularly where it involves women. Since his entry into national politics, he has systematically deployed gendered slurs to undermine female critics who challenge his narratives, going back to the “Nasty Woman” epithet he deployed against Hillary Clinton during a 2016 debate, calling Senator Elizabeth Warren “Pocohontos,” followed by “cackling Kamala” against Kamala Harris. Journalists like Megyn Kelly, Mika Brzezinski, and April Ryan have all been subjected to highly personal, often appearance-based, or vaguely sexualized slurs from the President, demonstrating a consistent tactical choice: when confronted by a woman asking an inconvenient question, pivot immediately to personal humiliation and denigration to deflect from the subject.Although the White House Correspondents’ Association has affirmed the necessity of asking tough questions and condemned the use of “demeaning and unprofessional language,” most White House reporters, no angels by any account, swallow the slights to remain on the beat and maintain access in a job that has become increasingly challenging. The White House on its part has tried to overcome the liberal mainstream media’s tough posture with a makeover of the press corps, drafting several MAGA influencers whose softball questions and sycophancy would be the envy of the North Korean leader. Since his entry into national politics, Trump has manufactured hundreds of disparaging monikers for his opponents, including men. His political rogues’ gallery includes “Lyin’ Ted Cruz,” “Liddle’ Marco Rubio,” “Pencil Neck Adam Schiff,” and, “Crooked Joe Biden.” More recently critics have tried to respond similarly, for instance, calling him “Cheeto” “Felonious Trump” and “Dozing Donald” after he was seen napping during a White House event. But none of the nicknames have stuck to Teflon Don.
