US President Donald Trump has clashed with Australian journalist Latika Bourke during a White House press conference, telling her she “doesn’t know what you’re talking about” after she questioned his approach to ending the war in Ukraine. The exchange, which took place this week, has been widely reported by Australian and international media.
Bourke, a Walkley Award-winning writer-at-large for The Nightly, asked Trump why he did not use his power to enable Ukraine to end the war. “You have within your power – you’re the most powerful man on Earth, why don’t you just enable Ukraine to finish this war tomorrow?” she said. Trump responded by questioning her knowledge: “Well, if you knew anything about what you were talking about, you’d be able… You do? I don’t think you do, really.”
In her own account of the incident, Bourke played down the confrontation, describing it as an example of how Trump handles questions he dislikes. “When he told me that I didn’t know what I was talking about when I asked a question about his attempts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, it simply demonstrated another instance of how he deals with questions he doesn’t like and how quick he is to feel slighted,” she wrote.
Other outlets reported the exchange in more dramatic terms. The Daily Mail said Trump “savaged” Bourke for “not knowing anything”, while The Australian ran the headline: “Trump blasts Australian journalist at White House: ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about’.” Sky News Australia described her question as “bizarre”. The Nightly later published a piece reminding readers of Bourke’s recent reporting from Ukraine, where she has visited twice in the last four months.
The incident follows another confrontation between Trump and Australian media, when he called Sydney Morning Herald correspondent Michael Koziol a “nasty guy” for asking a question. Trump’s interactions with Australian journalists have drawn attention as he continues to face scrutiny over his foreign policy decisions.
