A reporter’s road-trip video became ammunition in a political fight after he questioned Donald Trump about fatigue. Instead of keeping the exchange confined to the White House briefing room, an official administration-linked social media account turned the journalist’s casual snack footage into a public target.
How Jacob Bogage’s personal video appeared on an official account
The dispute began Thursday when Reuters White House reporter Jacob Bogage asked Trump why he abruptly canceled a campaign rally with a Republican Senate candidate in Kansas. Bogage raised the possibility that the president’s demanding cross-country midterm schedule had left him tired. Trump responded by asking which outlet Bogage worked for before launching into personal insults about the journalist’s appearance.
“You are a SICK guy!” Trump said, attacking Reuters before telling Bogage he looked “way out of shape” and telling him to get “in shape.” He ended the tirade by declaring, “You look like hell.”
The online exchange escalated when the White House’s Rapid Response 47 account joined the pile-on. The account, reportedly managed by Communications Director Steven Cheung, shared screenshots of Bogage munching on snacks inside his car, branding the images “sloppy!”
The pictures originated from a TikTok clip in which Bogage and his wife tried different snacks while traveling. The account also praised Trump’s clash with the reporter, declaring that the president “absolutely DESTROYS Fake News @jacobbogage” (via The Daily Beast).
The controversy also revived scrutiny of Cheung’s own history of personal attacks. Trump biographer Michael Wolff has targeted the communications director over his weight. He described what he called a “tragic feel” surrounding Cheung.
Speaking on The Daily Beast podcast, Wolff further alleged that Cheung had suffered collapsing fits linked to his size. Wolff also claimed he must remain “hidden away,” arguing that he cannot serve as White House press secretary because the role requires someone who “has to be a young woman.”
