Kaitlan Collins says Trump insult at dinner was no surprise
Kaitlan Collins told Jon Stewart that Trump’s jab at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner felt familiar from Oval Office exchanges.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
3 min read
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins said the Kaitlan Collins Trump insult that landed during Friday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner did not catch her off guard, telling Jon Stewart on Monday’s episode of “The Daily Show” that similar moments happen often when she covers the president.
Collins, CNN’s chief White House correspondent, discussed the dinner with Stewart after President Donald Trump criticized her from the stage while she was in the room. She said the larger setting was the only real difference from encounters she has had while questioning him in the Oval Office.
What did stand out, Collins said, was the mood inside the event. According to Collins, the room included Trump staffers, members of his cabinet, allies and Republicans in Congress, yet it grew quiet while the president delivered his remarks.
Stewart asked whether that silence reflected respect for Trump. Collins answered with a dry “Who’s to say,” keeping the exchange brief.
What did Trump say about Kaitlan Collins?
At the dinner, Trump objected to Collins receiving an award for her reporting on his tense meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. In his remarks, Trump said Collins “shouldn’t get the award” and called it “fake,” then criticized her demeanor by saying she should smile more.
Trump also compared Collins to Dylan Mulvaney, the transgender advocate whose 2023 Bud Light social media promotion became a target of a conservative boycott. In his speech, Trump said he had thought Collins had gained a new sponsorship before saying the person on the Bud Light can was Mulvaney.
Mulvaney responded Sunday in a TikTok video, saying she was “honored” to be compared with Collins and describing Trump’s attack as possibly the “greatest compliment of all.”
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner where Collins was honored had been moved from April after a gunman crashed through security at the original event, according to reporting on the dinner.
Why did Collins say she asks Trump direct questions?
Stewart noted that Collins’ questions to Trump are often straightforward. Collins said she frames them that way because she wants viewers across political lines to understand why the answer matters.
She said her goal is for people listening at a briefing, during a presidential exchange or at home to hear the question and want the answer too. Collins said that includes her family in Alabama, people in the White House and people in Washington.
Collins also thanked CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer, who presented awards to journalists at the dinner. She said Blitzer had called her every day since Friday.
Despite the president’s remarks, Collins said she did not want the story centered on her personal reaction. She told Stewart that turning it into a back-and-forth with Trump would distract from the reporting and questions that prompted the criticism.
Collins said she believes the more effective response is to point people back to the work Trump was criticizing, including the reporting for which she received the award. She said the fact that she was recognized for that work appeared to bother him.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.