Trump lashes out at Reuters reporter after health question
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
President Donald Trump angrily attacked a Reuters journalist who asked whether his skipped campaign stops in Kansas and Iowa were tied to concerns about his health, as his campaign continues to juggle rally cancellations and tele-rallies across battleground states.
President Donald Trump erupted on Thursday when a Reuters reporter asked whether his recent decision to skip campaign stops in Kansas and Iowa was related to feeling unwell after weeks of traveling. The President snapped at the journalist, saying, "Oh, you're sick to ask that question. You are sick," and also called Reuters "terrible."
The confrontation quickly turned crude as Trump insulted the reporter's appearance, saying, "Look at this guy. He's way out of shape," and later, "You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape. You look like hell." He also insisted that he felt "perfect" and said he had been monitoring his own health for two weeks.
The exchange came amid the cancellation of planned weekend rallies in Salina, Kansas, and Dubuque, Iowa, as Republicans face highly competitive races heading into the midterm elections. The Republican National Committee confirmed the Iowa rally cancellation, while Trump's campaign organization, MAGA Inc., announced a series of tele-rallies in at least 19 states, including Kansas and Iowa, before Election Day.
Even with the cancellations, Trump is scheduled to travel to Florida for another campaign event on Friday. He had earlier acknowledged the strain of his schedule, telling supporters at a Mississippi rally that "God didn't make your vocal cords to do a rally every day."