White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday offered a remarkable defense of President Donald Trump after he insulted a young female reporter on Air Force One, calling her “piggy” when she asked about newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails.
The exchange unfolded as the Bloomberg reporter pressed Trump about messages in which Epstein claimed the president “knew about the girls.” Trump, visibly irritated, wagged a finger in her face and snapped, “Quiet, piggy.” Trump has denied any involvement in Epstein’s crimes.
Rather than apologize or temper the moment, Leavitt framed the insult as proof of Trump’s supposed transparency.
“Look, the president is very frank and honest with everyone in this room,” she said. “He gets frustrated when you lie about him, when you spread fake news about him and his administration. But he is also the most transparent president in history.”
She added that Trump’s habit of berating journalists face-to-face was “more respectful than what you saw in the last administration.”
Trump’s history of targeting female reporters stretches back nearly a decade. In 2016, he infamously said Megyn Kelly had “blood coming out of her wherever” after she confronted him about his habit of insulting women. The insults never fully abated. Rosie O’Donnell, Katie Tur, Mika Brzezinski, Yamiche Alcindor—the list of women he has demeaned, mocked or shouted down spans years and mediums.
But the latest confrontation comes at a moment of intense pressure for the administration. Trump has been visibly irritated by ongoing coverage of the Epstein scandal, which has dominated political news for months as congressional Republicans and Democrats forced the release of investigative documents. The White House initially touted its willingness to disclose records; that tone shifted sharply as more emails emerged linking Epstein and Trump socially, and as the Justice Department declared there was no “client list” to release.
The administration’s handling of the scandal has provoked a political storm, culminating this week with newly released emails in which Epstein claimed he had leverage over Trump. The president has fiercely denied the claims and lashed out at the media, congressional critics and even some of his own supporters.
Trump’s frustration has increasingly boiled over in public. On Tuesday in the Oval Office, he erupted when a reporter asked Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Two days later, he turned his ire toward the Bloomberg reporter aboard Air Force One.
The timing is politically precarious. His approval ratings have sagged at the end of his first year back in office, with even Fox News reporting historic lows. The spate of high-profile clashes with journalists—especially women—has only added fuel.
Still, Leavitt held the line, insisting that Trump’s behavior is simply part of his leadership style.
“I think the president being frank and open and honest to your faces rather than hiding behind your backs is a lot more respectful,” she said.
The controversy is unlikely to fade quickly. Epstein’s name continues surfacing in bipartisan document releases. Lawmakers from both parties have hammered the administration for months. And Trump himself has shown no patience for dropping the subject, even attacking his own base this summer for believing what he called the “Jeffrey Epstein Hoax.”
With tensions rising and new emails circulating, Trump’s exchanges with the press have grown sharper—and more personal. The “piggy” remark is only the latest flashpoint in a presidency increasingly defined by its war with scrutiny.
