President Donald Trump suddenly blasted Fox News Senior White House Correspondent Jacqui Heinrich this week, suggesting she belongs at CNN after she raised questioned his Tesla event at the White House.
“I watched Jacqui Heinrich from Fox over the weekend and I thought she was absolutely terrible. She should be working for CNN, not Fox,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Not surprisingly, I later found out that she’s a fan of the White House Correspondents Association!”
I watched Jacqui Heinrich from Fox over the weekend and I thought she was absolutely terrible. She should be working for CNN, not Fox. Not surprisingly, I later found out that she’s a fan of the White House Correspondents Association!
Donald Trump Truth Social Post 3/19/25 03:13…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) March 19, 2025
The president’s criticism came after Heinrich’s report over the weekend where she questioned Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno about the propriety of Trump turning “the South Lawn of the White House into a Tesla showroom.”
During the segment, Heinrich also asked about Tesla’s open letter to the Trump administration expressing concerns over the president’s tariff policies.
Later, Heinrich pressed National Security Advisor Mike Waltz on whether Trump was “being played” by Russian President Vladimir Putin in ceasefire negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Citing a Washington Post report about Kremlin negotiation tactics, Heinrich asked, “How do you know President Trump isn’t being played right now by Putin?”
Waltz responded that the question was “almost laughable” and defended Trump’s negotiating capabilities against foreign leaders.
Longtime Fox News liberal host Brit Hume rushed to Heinrich’s defense on social media following Trump’s criticism.
I watched her too. She plays it straight, covering both sides of a story and has certainly played fair with you. You may have a case against some White House reporters, but not @JacquiHeinrich. https://t.co/cUswKLQPuX
— Brit Hume (@brithume) March 19, 2025
Heinrich, 36, who was promoted to Senior White House Correspondent in June, has had a contentious relationship with the Trump administration.
She recently criticized the White House’s decision to remove the left-leaning White House Correspondents’ Association from controlling which outlets are permitted in the White House press pool.
“This move does not give the power back to the people – it gives power to the White House,” Heinrich, who serves as a WHCA board member, posted on X. “The WHCA is democratically elected by the full-time White House press corps.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that traditional outlets like Fox News would retain access while additional streaming services would be added to “reach different audiences than traditional cable and broadcast.”
Heinrich has previously been at the center of media controversies.
In 2020, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson reportedly tried to get her fired after she bashed Trump’s claims about Dominion voting systems.
According to documents revealed in Dominion’s defamation lawsuit against Fox, Carlson texted colleagues: “Please get her fired. Seriously… It’s measurably hurting the company.”