Trump Launches Scathing Attack on NYT Reporter, Unleashes Disturbing Nickname

President Donald Trump unleashed a barrage of insults against New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman on Friday, coining a derogatory nickname that has drawn widespread attention. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump referred to Haberman as “Maggot Hagerman,” escalating his ongoing feud with the media.

“Maggot Hagerman, just another SLEAZEBAG writer for The Failing New York Times, insists on writing false stories about me, even though she fully knows and understands that the exact opposite of anything she says is usually the truth,” Trump declared, accompanying his remarks with a photo of Haberman.

He further threatened to include her in his Florida-based lawsuit against The New York Times, stating, “In any event, I’m thinking of adding Maggot, and some of her ‘associates,’ into my Florida based Lawsuit against The Times which, very happily, seems to be proceeding nicely. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Haberman, who serves as a White House correspondent for the Times and won a Pulitzer Prize in 2018, has faced a series of attacks from Trump in the past. She authored the 2022 book “Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America,” which features numerous interviews with the former president.

Interestingly, it remains unclear why Haberman became the target of Trump’s ire this time. Her last article prior to his post was published on March 5 and discussed the dismissal of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

However, Haberman appeared on CNN just a day before Trump’s comments, where she and anchor Kaitlan Collins—another frequent target of Trump’s vitriol—discussed rising gas and oil prices in the U.S. since the onset of the Iran war last month. “This is not something that most of the people in his orbit right now are having an easy time messaging or solving, and you can see that every day,” she noted.

She also pointed out that while many in Trump’s base might agree that “Iran is a threat to U.S. interests,” it does not necessarily mean voters will accept $4 gas for an extended period, especially given video evidence of Trump criticizing President Biden over gas prices.

In recent months, Trump has intensified his attacks on female journalists who have scrutinized him, particularly regarding his connections to the late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. In February, he labeled Collins as the “worst reporter” and admonished her for not smiling during interviews. Last November, he attempted to silence Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey by calling her “piggy” while she pressed him about Epstein.

The pattern of targeting female journalists raises questions about Trump's approach to media criticism and his willingness to engage with challenging questions. As tensions between Trump and the press continue to escalate, observers are left wondering how this dynamic will evolve in the coming months.