Donald Trump has blasted an Australian reporter for “hurting Australia” after the leader was questioned about his business transactions while in office.
The US president was questioned by John Lyons of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) how much richer he had grown since returning to the White House in January.
“I don’t know,” Trump responded, stating that his children managed the family businesses. “In my view, you’re hurting Australia badly today, and they want to get along with me.”
Trump stated he would be seeing Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese “very soon”, continuing: “I’m going to tell him about you. You set a very bad tone.”
When Lyons tried to ask another question, Trump held his index finger to his lips before saying “quiet” and moved away to speak to another journalist.
Trump with Australian journalist over business deals in office
For months, Albanese has been seeking a meeting with the US president after talks between the pair were cancelled at the last-minute when Trump left the G20 summit in June earlier than expected to deal with the war in the Middle East.
Albanese – who will be in the US during the UN General Assembly next week – said on Monday that he and Trump would “see each other in New York”.
“He’s having a reception on Tuesday night of next week. And also, we’ll see each other at various forums that are being staged between now and the end of the year.”
US-Australia ties have been tense in recent months following the announcement by the Trump administration of an inquiry into Aukus, a considerable £176bn ($239bn; A$368bn) submarine contract between the US, UK and Australia signed in 2021.
Australia was also slapped with a minimum tariff of 10% on all exports to the US in April, which Albanese described as “not the act of a friend”.
Trump with Australian journalist over business deals in office
Lyons responded after the curt reply by Trump that it was an “absurd notion” that making proper questions politely would damage ties between the long-standing allies.
“For me, it was a completely normal thing to do to ask questions that I don’t believe were provocative,” he said in an ABC interview, saying his questions were reasonable, research-based, and not asked in an abusive manner.
The ABC explained his questions were part of an investigation by their Four Corners programme into Trump’s business affairs since he came back to office.
Within minutes of the heated encounter, a social media tweet on an official White House account displaying the reaction carried this caption: Trump “smacks down a rude foreign Fake News loser”.
