NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump denounced ABC News\u2019 Mary Bruce as a \u201cterrible reporter\u201d Tuesday and threatened the network\u2019s license to broadcast after she asked him three sharp questions at the White House.<\/p>\n
The network\u2019s chief White House correspondent was among reporters let into the Oval Office to question the president and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. She asked Trump whether it was appropriate for his family to be doing business in Saudi Arabia while he was president.<\/p>\n
Before he could answer, she directed a question<\/a> to the Saudi leader: \u201cYour Royal Highness, the U.S. intelligence concluded that you orchestrated the brutal murder of a journalist. 9\/11 families are furious that you are here in the Oval Office. Why should Americans trust you? And the same to you, Mr. President.\u201d<\/p>\n After asking Bruce who she worked for, Trump called ABC \u201cfake news\u201d and defended his family\u2019s business operations in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n The president dismissed the U.S. intelligence findings that the prince likely had some culpability in the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi kingdom. He said \u201ca lot of people didn\u2019t like\u201d Khashoggi, a Saudi citizen and a Virginia resident.<\/p>\n For his part, Prince Mohammed said Khashoggi\u2019s death was painful and \u201ca huge mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump later criticized Bruce for asking the prince a \u201chorrible, insubordinate and just a terrible question.\u201d He laced into her after a third query, about why the White House is waiting for congressional action to release more details about sex offender Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s<\/a> correspondence. \u201cWhy not just do it now?\u201d Bruce asked.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not the question that I mind,\u201d Trump said. \u201cIt\u2019s your attitude. I think you are a terrible reporter. It\u2019s the way you ask these questions.\u201d<\/p>\n After addressing the Epstein question, he returned to Bruce, saying that \u201cpeople are wise to your hoax.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think the license should be taken away from ABC because your news is so fake and it\u2019s so wrong,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we have a great (FCC) commissioner, the chairman, who should look at that because I think when you come in and you\u2019re 97% negative to Trump. And then Trump wins the election in a landslide. That means, obviously, your news is not credible. And you\u2019re not credible as a reporter.\u201d<\/p>\n ABC News had no comment Tuesday on Trump\u2019s statements, which referred to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who leads the federal agency responsible for licensing local broadcast stations.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Bloomberg News issued a comment on Trump referring to one of its reporters, Catherine Lucey, as \u201cpiggy\u201d during a question-and-answer session last Friday on Air Force One.<\/p>\n \u201cOur White House journalists perform a vital public service, asking questions without fear or favor,\u201d Bloomberg News said. \u201cWe remain focused on reporting issues of public interest fairly and accurately.\u201d <\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http:\/\/x.com\/dbauder<\/a> and https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/dbauder.bsky.social<\/a><\/p>\n