Trump Lashes Out at CNN's Kristen Holmes Over North Korea Question at White House Briefing
President Donald Trump berated CNN senior White House correspondent Kristen Holmes at a press briefing on Monday, August 17, 2026, after she asked whether he had spoken with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
The exchange turned sharp fast. When Holmes followed up — asking whether Kim had asked Trump to curtail U.S. military exercises with South Korea — Trump told her, "Quiet." He then called her "a loud, boisterous person" and said, "You're faking news!" As Holmes tried to press further, Trump repeatedly told her, "Be quiet! Be quiet! Be quiet!" and labelled her "a fake reporter" who reports "fake news," according to Variety.
The question carried real weight. A day earlier, on August 16, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he was "not happy" the United States had agreed to participate in joint military exercises with South Korea and said he would instruct Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to "substantially reduce" them. That same day, Reuters reported that Trump had ordered the Pentagon to cut back the exercises. A Pentagon spokesperson referred questions on the matter to the White House, which did not immediately respond.
The North Korea thread has a longer history. In June 2025, the White House said Trump would welcome communications with Kim, citing their past friendly relations, Reuters reported. A 2022 book said Trump had told associates he remained in contact with Kim after leaving the presidency, per Reuters.
Holmes also pressed Trump on a remark by Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff, who at a campaign rally earlier on August 17 said Trump "doesn't want to do the job" and "wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the Emir of Qatar." The "Natalie" in question is Natalie Harp, Trump's executive assistant, who was among a small group of officials secretly moved off the Qatar-donated Air Force One to a smaller military aircraft in Turkey because of a threat from Iran, as The New York Times reported.
The White House event was meant to honour a teenager. Ryder Williams, a young lifeguard, rescued a 10-year-old boy in Santa Cruz, California, the previous month. The briefing's original purpose — recognising that act of bravery — was overtaken by the confrontation.
After the exchange, the White House's Rapid Response 47 account on X posted that Holmes is "a disgraceful, humiliating embarrassment to her alleged profession" and called journalists "scumbags." In a separate post, the White House comms team said of Holmes: "Someday, your children will come across your disgusting and inhumane question. They will be sickened and embarrassed to have a parent be so callous and vindictive," according to Variety.
CNN stood behind its correspondent. In a statement, the network called Holmes "one of the most respected and accomplished journalists covering the White House" and said that public officials' personal attacks on journalists for asking questions are "beneath the office and inconsistent with the principles of a free press."
