President Donald Trump and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt launched a scathing verbal attack against CBS News anchor Margaret Brennan during an interview with The Daily Caller published on September 2, 2025. The exchange occurred during a Friday Oval Office session where Trump criticized mainstream media coverage of his administration.
During the interview, Trump initially focused on his recent settlement with CBS parent company Paramount over allegations of election interference related to the network’s handling of a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. The conversation then shifted to criticism of various CBS personalities, including former “CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell.
Trump expressed particular disdain for Brennan, stating that the woman hosting “Face the Nation” performed poorly in her role. When Daily Caller White House correspondent Reagan Reese initially misidentified the host as NBC’s Kristen Welker, Leavitt corrected the mistake by providing Brennan’s name. This prompted Trump to directly ask his press secretary for her assessment of the CBS anchor.
Leavitt responded with a direct insult, telling the interviewer that Brennan was intellectually deficient and authorizing the reporter to publish her comment on the record. Trump immediately agreed with this characterization, adding that he found Brennan to be unpleasant and hostile in her approach.
The criticism centered around Brennan’s recent contentious interviews with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Trump praised Rubio’s performance during these exchanges, particularly highlighting his handling of questions about the administration’s diplomatic efforts. The president noted that Rubio demonstrated intelligence and skill when dealing with what he characterized as hostile questioning from the CBS host.
Trump referenced a specific mid-August interview where Brennan suggested European leaders were concerned about potential pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy regarding peace negotiations with Russia. This followed Trump’s Alaska summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and preceded a White House meeting with Zelenskyy and European leaders. Rubio had pushed back against Brennan’s assertions during that interview, dismissing her characterization as a misguided media narrative.
The president expressed surprise that Rubio continued appearing on “Face the Nation” given what he described as the intense animosity displayed during questioning sessions. Trump indicated that the level of hostility from the show’s host made such appearances challenging for administration officials.
During the same interview, Trump also criticized O’Donnell’s tenure at CBS, suggesting that numerous women selected randomly from the public could have performed her job more effectively. He noted O’Donnell’s high salary while predicting her departure from the network, which had already occurred as she transitioned to other roles within CBS programming.
The president used the opportunity to highlight what he characterized as the significant audience size for conservative media, suggesting that traditional networks failed to recognize the market potential of pro-Trump viewership. He contrasted this with his assessment of legacy media performance and audience engagement.
Trump also mentioned White House aide Natalie Harp, a former One America News anchor, suggesting she possessed superior broadcasting skills compared to current network hosts. Harp had previously worked as a television anchor before joining the Trump campaign and subsequently the White House staff, where she gained recognition for her dedication to providing the president with printed articles and social media posts.
This attack on Brennan represents part of a broader pattern of Trump administration criticism directed at mainstream media outlets. Leavitt has previously engaged in confrontational exchanges with reporters and has described methods used by White House communications staff to challenge journalists’ credibility by researching and highlighting the political affiliations of experts cited in news stories.
The interview with The Daily Caller provided a platform for the administration to express its grievances against specific media personalities and outlets. Neither Brennan nor CBS News provided immediate responses to requests for comment regarding the personal attacks made during the interview.
