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Nov. 7, 2018 / 5:51 PM GMT / Updated 6:33 PM GMT
By Jason Abbruzzese
President Donald Trump’s ongoing feud with Jim Acosta, CNN’s chief White House correspondent, boiled over on Wednesday, with Trump calling Acosta “a rude, terrible person” as he tried to ask the president a question.
The exchange came during a White House press conference on the 2018 midterm elections, in which Trump called out failed Republican candidates who didn’t “embrace” him.
Trump began taking questions and called on Acosta, who tried to ask about the president’s characterization of a migrant caravan of roughly 4,000 Central American immigrants who are walking through Mexico to claim asylum in the U.S.
Trump immediately interrupted Acosta as the journalist began to ask his question. “Here we go,” Trump said to Acosta.
Acosta then challenged Trump’s usage of the word “invasion” to describe the caravan and asked the president if he thought he had demonized immigrants. Trump then said he wanted immigrants to “come in legally.”
When the president tried to go to another journalist, Acosta declined to give up the microphone and asked about possible indictments by special counsel Robert Mueller based on the ongoing investigation into Trump’s presidential campaign.
Trump told Acosta to “put down the mic” and a White House staffer attempted to take the mic from the CNN correspondent but he wouldn’t give it up.
Acosta finally relinquished the mic and sat down, but Trump then began to verbally berate him from the podium.
“CNN should be ashamed of itself having you working for them,” Trump said. “You are a rude, terrible person. You shouldn’t be working for CNN.”
Trump added that the way Acosta had treated Press Secretary Sarah Sanders was “awful.”
The president then moved to address the next questioner, NBC News White House correspondent Peter Alexander, who defended Acosta.
“In Jim’s defense, I’ve traveled with him and watched him, he’s a diligent reporter who busts his butt like the rest of us,” Alexander said.
“Well I’m not a big fan of yours either,” Trump said.
Acosta then stood up and began speaking to the president off microphone, to which the president responded, “when you report fake news, which CNN does a lot, you are the enemy of the people.”
Acosta later tweeted his thanks to Alexander.
Later in the press conference, Yamiche Alcindor, White House correspondent for PBS, asked the president about labeling himself a nationalist and and whether he felt that emboldened white nationalists.
“I don’t know why you’d say that,” Trump said. “That’s such a racist question.”
Judy Woodruff, anchor and managing editors of PBS NewsHour, tweeted her support for Alcindor.
“My @NewsHour colleague @Yamiche is a complete professional, an utterly fair and hardworking reporter, Woodruff wrote. “She did not ask a ‘racist question.'”
Trump also repeatedly told April Ryan, White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks, to sit down, adding that “it’s such a hostile media.”
The press conference lasted almost an hour and a half, making it one of the longest of Trump’s presidency.
CNN released a statement through its public relations Twitter account released a statement addressing the exchange with Acosta.
“This President’s ongoing attacks on the press have gone to far,” the company said. “They are not only dangerous, they are disturbingly un-American. While President Trump has made it clear he does not respect a free press, he has a sworn obligation to protect it. A free press is vital to democracy, and we stand behind Jim Acosta and his fellow journalists everywhere.”
Trump and Acosta have sparred before, with the CNN journalist having emerged as one of the president’s favorite personal targets for his broader criticism of the media. In July, Trump declined to take a question from Acosta during a press conference with British Prime Minister Teresa May.
“CNN is fake news,” Trump said. “I don’t take questions from CNN.”