Peter Doocy dodges transparent president question after Trump shoutout
Peter Doocy sidestepped a Trump transparency question after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, TMZ DC reported.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
2 min read
Fox News senior White House correspondent Peter Doocy did not name his pick for the “most transparent president” when TMZ DC asked him after Friday night’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner, according to video published by the outlet.
The exchange came after President Donald Trump mentioned Doocy during his dinner remarks. TMZ DC’s Charlie Cotton later caught up with Doocy and raised the moment, asking about Trump’s question on presidential transparency.
Doocy told Cotton that his own response in the room was to ask Trump whether he should stand up, according to TMZ DC. When Cotton pressed him for a direct answer on which president deserved the transparency title, Doocy steered away from naming one.
What did Peter Doocy say about the most transparent president?
According to TMZ DC, Doocy avoided giving a president’s name and instead said he was glad Trump had not called him a “son of a bitch.” The remark referred to a widely covered 2022 White House moment involving then-President Joe Biden.
C-SPAN video from Jan. 24, 2022, showed Biden calling Doocy a “stupid son of a bitch” after the Fox News reporter asked about inflation and whether it could hurt Democrats in that year’s midterm elections, according to TMZ’s earlier report on the exchange.
The Friday dinner was held at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington, D.C., TMZ DC reported. The event was described by the outlet as a smaller-scale redo of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner after the earlier gathering was rescheduled.
According to TMZ DC, the previous dinner date was moved and security was tightened after a gunman fired shots inside the hotel where White House media members and administration officials were gathered in April.
Trump’s appearance marked his first time attending the White House Correspondents’ Dinner during his presidency, after he had previously skipped the annual event, TMZ DC reported.
The dinner appeared to proceed without disruption, according to TMZ DC. The outlet reported that Trump appeared upbeat while delivering jokes aimed at CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, Bruce Springsteen and several Democratic figures.
TMZ DC also reported that Trump discussed the idea of serving a third term during the event. The outlet said he later brushed off an awkward moment when The Wall Street Journal received recognition for reporting details about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The Doocy exchange stood out because Trump had put the Fox reporter in the spotlight from the stage, then the reporter declined to return the favor with a clean answer on Trump’s transparency claim.
This story draws on original reporting from TMZ.