"Shut up, piggy!": Trump's insult to a Bloomberg journalist

BarcelonaUS President Donald Trump displayed yet another act of contempt for the press last Friday, this time compounded by intolerable sexism. During the flight to Mar-a-Lago aboard Air Force 1, Bloomberg journalist Catherine Lucey asked him about his previous reluctance to release pending files on the pedophile Jeffrey EpsteinLucey asked him why he didn't want to make the documents public if, as the president claims, they contain nothing incriminating, and Trump's response was intimidating and extremely rude. He pointed his finger at her and ordered, "Shut up, shut up, piggy."

The clip of the incident has spread rapidly on social media in the last few hours. Progressive organizations such as Occupy Democrats and Really American have strongly criticized the president's behavior, calling it "disgusting" and an example of a "disrespectful and unfit" leader. Neither the journalist nor Bloomberg has commented on the incident.

Despite his initial opposition, on Sunday Trump changed his mind and demanded that House Republicans Vote in favor of releasing the pending files on Epsteina matter that must be clarified in the coming hours of this Tuesday. The president's change of heart is even more significant because just days before, Trump had summoned the ultraconservative congresswoman Lauren Boebert to pressure her into voting against it.

The confrontation with Lucey didn't end aboard Air Force One. On the tarmac at West Palm Beach Airport, the journalist wanted to ask him about the role of presenters like Tucker Carlson in giving a platform to white supremacists like Nick Fuentes. Trump interrupted her again and berated her: "Will you let me finish? You're the worst. I don't even know why Bloomberg keeps you on."

Lucey has worked for the agency since 2017 and was previously a White House correspondent for the Wall Street Journalwhere she covered politics, gender issues, and domestic policy during the Biden and Trump administrations. She had also worked for the Associated Press.

The president has spent months trying to downplay the significance of the Epstein files, which he has called a "Democratic hoax." Last week, 23,000 documents were released, including emails in which Epstein claimed that Trump "knew things about the girls" and had spent "hours" at his home with Virginia Giuffre. Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

Threat to ABC

President Trump engaged in another clash with the press on Tuesday, accusing an ABC News reporter of being "a terrible journalist" and threatening to revoke the network's broadcast license. The incident occurred during a press conference in the Oval Office with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, after the reporter asked Trump about the Epstein documents. With great hostility, Trump commented, "It's not the question, it's your attitude. You're a terrible person and a terrible reporter." However, the attack didn't stop at insults. The president asserted that ABC is part of a "Democratic setup" to link him to Epstein and accused the network of systematically producing "fake and misleading" news. In a particularly controversial moment, Trump said, "I think ABC's license should be revoked. Their newscast is so fake, a good commissioner should look into it." The president also criticized internal data that, in his opinion, indicates the network is "97% negative toward Trump," which, he argued, demonstrates that "they are not a credible source." Trump insisted he had no relationship with Epstein and asserted that he kicked him out of his club "many years ago because he was a sick pervert." He pointed to Democratic figures like Bill Clinton, Larry Summers, and Reid Hoffman as "true friends" of the financier. He also accused ABC of "staying silent" about these names and protecting "the radical left." The confrontation with the ABC reporter ended with a curt order: "Stop asking your questions." Afterward, Trump introduced another reporter with one last jab at the network: "Your company is a disgrace."