President Donald Trump unloaded on a White House reporter Thursday after she pressed him on why he blamed former President Joe Biden for allowing the suspect in a deadly shooting near the White House into the country.
According to Fox News, the tense back-and-forth unfolded after CBS News correspondent Nancy Cordes questioned Trump about the Afghan national accused of fatally shooting U.S. National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom and critically wounding Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe.
Cordes pointed to reports that the suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, had been vetted by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security before entering the U.S. under the Biden administration’s 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal.
She then asked why Trump continued to claim there had been no vetting.
“Your DOJ IG just reported this year that there was thorough vetting by DHS and by the FBI of these Afghans who were brought into the U.S., so why do you blame the Biden administration?” she asked.
Trump shot back instantly.
“Because they let him in. Are you stupid? Are you a stupid person?” he said. “Because they came in on a plane along with thousands of other people that shouldn’t be here. And you’re just asking questions, because you’re a stupid person.”
The sharp exchange came one day after authorities said the 29-year-old Lakanwal shot Beckstrom and Wolfe just blocks from the White House in what officials described as a “targeted” attack.
Wolfe remains “fighting for his life,” Trump said Thursday as he announced Beckstrom’s death. Lakanwal, wounded by other National Guard members, is currently hospitalized and in custody.
Lakanwal entered the U.S. in September 2021 as part of “Operation Allies Welcome,” following the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.
That evacuation saw approximately 120,000 people removed from the country, with nearly 800 aircraft transporting thousands within 17 days, according to federal data.
Trump reiterated his belief that Afghan refugees brought in during the withdrawal had not been properly screened, despite Cordes citing a DOJ report claiming otherwise.
“And they came in, and they were unvetted, they were unchecked. There were many of them. And they came in on big planes, and it was disgraceful,” Trump said. He continued, “And they came in, and they shouldn’t have come in, and frankly, the whole thing was a mess. The whole Afghanistan situation was a mess.”
The encounter marks the latest heated moment between Trump and female reporters. Earlier this month, he called one “piggy” and another a “terrible person.”
Biden responded to Wednesday’s shooting with a message on X, saying he was “heartbroken” and urging Americans to stand together against “violence of any kind.”
