President Donald Trump criticized New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman on Friday, March 21, asserting she “owes” him her Pulitzer Prize following her co-authored report regarding tech billionaire Elon Musk allegedly obtaining sensitive military information.
The president’s remarks were in response to a New York Times article co-authored by Haberman, which claimed Musk, an advisor to the White House and head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was set to be briefed on potential U.S. military plans in the event of a conflict with China. The report cited two unnamed U.S. officials as sources.
The president expressed his disapproval on his Truth Social platform, calling the newspaper “one of the worst and most purposely inaccurate newspapers anywhere in the World.” Trump argued that the Times falsely implied Musk would jeopardize U.S. interests by sharing sensitive details with Chinese officials due to his business dealings in the country.
He also criticized CNN for promoting the story, accusing the network of spreading a false narrative that was potentially libelous, while also critiquing their viewership numbers.
Trump’s critique included name-calling, referring to Haberman as “Maggot Hagerman,” alleging she is a dishonest reporter who invents sources when writing about him, and asserting he has not spoken to her in years.
Haberman was part of a New York Times team that investigated Trump and his advisers’ ties to Russia, a project that earned her a Pulitzer Prize in 2018. Referring to this accolade, Trump wrote: “She lead the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, only to realize that she was duped and got it wrong. She owes me a totally discredited Pulitzer Prize for her bad reporting.”
Trump concluded his post with an emphatic statement: “The Fake News is the ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE…And Elon is NOT BEING BRIEFED ON ANYTHING CHINA BY THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR!!!”
Musk responded to the controversy, condemning the Times report. He warned that Pentagon officials who leaked false information to the New York Times would be identified and prosecuted. He later labeled the newspaper as propaganda.
The contentious report suggested that Musk would be privy to highly sensitive information about potential military strategies against China. According to multiple sources who spoke to various news outlets, Musk was initially slated to attend a Pentagon briefing concerning China-related matters, although the nature of this briefing became a point of contention.
Trump later expanded on his stance during comments at the White House, stating, “I don’t want to show that to anybody. But certainly, you wouldn’t show it to a businessman who is helping us so much. He’s a great patriot… But I certainly wouldn’t want — you know, Elon has businesses in China, and he would be susceptible perhaps to that.”
The President’s acknowledgment of Musk’s potential conflict of interest regarding China marked an uncommon instance of Trump publicly limiting his close advisor’s extensive role in the administration.
Despite the controversy, Musk did visit the Pentagon on Friday and met with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for over an hour. As he left the building, Musk told reporters the meeting was great, as always, and reminded them he had visited the Pentagon before. He declined to disclose the discussion details.
Hegseth stated that the meeting centered on DOGE initiatives, innovation, and efficiency measures at the Pentagon rather than war planning. He firmly denied to reporters at the White House that any war plans or Chinese war plans were discussed.
The Times report had described a possible briefing that would include detailed slides outlining U.S. military strategy for a conflict with China, covering everything from threat indicators to potential Chinese targets.
Several defense officials confirmed to various news outlets that while plans had existed for Musk to receive some form of China-related briefing, these plans changed after the Times published its report. Rather than meeting in the secure Joint Chiefs conference room known informally as “the tank,” Musk met with Hegseth in his office.
The controversy underscores the ongoing tensions between the Trump administration and major news outlets, particularly The New York Times, as well as the unique role Musk plays as both a private businessman with substantial foreign business interests and a key advisor to the president with apparent access to sensitive government information.
The New York Times has upheld its reporting on the matter, though neither Haberman nor the newspaper has issued a direct response to Trump’s personal attacks.
