Donald Trump told a journalist he was “not being very nice” during a fiery interview to mark his first 100 days back in office.
The former US president sat down with ABC reporter Terry Moran on Tuesday for a wide-ranging conversation. However, the exchange quickly became combative as the journalist pressed Trump on immigration, tariffs and gang crime.
At one point, Trump snapped: “I’ve never even heard of you,” after being challenged on his administration’s deportation policies and claims surrounding gang members.
The interview, granted to mark the milestone of Trump’s return to the White House, saw repeated clashes — particularly over the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. He is a father from Maryland and an El Salvador native, who was deported under allegations of gang affiliation.
Read also: What has Donald Trump done in his first 100 days?
When shown evidence that Mr Abrego Garcia was not a confirmed MS-13 gang member, Trump pointed to a photo claiming to show the words “MS-13” tattooed on his knuckles. Moran responded that the image had been digitally altered.
“That was Photoshopped,” Moran said.
Trump, appearing to laugh, replied: “Wait a minute. Wait a minute. He had MS-13 on his knuckles.”
He added: “They’re giving you the big break of a lifetime, you know — you’re doing the interview. I picked you because, frankly, I never heard of you, but that’s OK. But you’re not being very nice.”
The heated exchange was just one of several testy moments during the sit-down.
So, what else did the pair clash over?
Here are five of the key issues discussed during the interview:
China and the tariffs
Moran questioned Trump’s approach to the ongoing trade war with China, which had escalated significantly since Trump imposed tariffs of 104 per cent on Chinese goods. The tariffs, intended to pressure China into addressing trade imbalances and intellectual property theft, have had wide-ranging effects, including rising costs on goods imported from China.
As a result, many economists warned that the tariffs could lead to higher prices for US consumers, affecting everything from electronics to clothing to building materials.
Moran pressed Trump on his optimistic phrasing, asking whether Americans should expect tough times ahead, given the tariffs. “Hang tough?” he questioned.
Trump bristled, accusing Moran of trying to insinuate that there would be problems, before responding with confidence: “Nothing’s gonna happen. I do know business…”
Moran then pointed out that the tariffs, particularly those aimed at China, operated "like an embargo" on the country. In response, Trump doubled down, asserting: “They deserve it.”
He explained his rationale, noting that China’s trade practices had long drained the US economy: “China probably will eat those tariffs. But at 145, they basically can’t do much business with the United States. And they were making a trillion dollars a year off us. They were ripping us off like nobody's ever ripped us off.”
Trump expanded his criticism beyond China, slamming other global trading partners. “By the way, we have other countries that were just as bad. If you look at the European Union, it was terrible what they’ve done to us. Every country, almost every country in the world, was ripping us off.”
Moran shot back, questioning Trump’s belief that the tariffs wouldn’t harm the US economy: “So your answer to the concern about the tariffs is, ‘Everything’s gonna be hunky-dory?’”
Trump, however, remained resolute, insisting: “Everybody’s gonna be just fine. It wouldn’t have been if I didn’t do this. I had a choice. I could leave it, have a nice, easy time. But I think ultimately you would've had an implosion. Our country had inflation worse than it’s ever had before.”
Immigration and deportation
Moran raised concerns about the methods being used for deportation. He said illegal immigration numbers had decreased, but there were questions over whether deportations had followed due process. He referenced current Supreme Court rulings, which guarantee individuals targeted for deportation the right to a hearing.
Trump, however, was defiant in his response: “Well, [the methods] seem to work.”
Moran then pressed Trump on whether he acknowledged that the law requires every person facing deportation to first have a hearing, where they can make their case. Trump responded by shifting the focus to President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, claiming that the administration allowed millions of people to enter the US illegally.
He continued: “Do they get hearings when Biden allowed 21 million — because I think the number’s 21, maybe 20 million — people to flow into our country? He had 21 million people come in through a stupid open border.”
Trump added: “They were prisoners and people that you don’t want, in many cases, in our country. They came from all over the world—some of the roughest countries in the world. They had terrorists, by the way.”
Moran didn’t relent, reiterating: “But the law? The law requires that every single person who is going to be deported gets a hearing first. The law is the law, and you’ve sworn to uphold it.”
Trump, undeterred, replied: “If these people came in, they’re not citizens, they came in illegally. We have to get rid of them fast. I can't have a major trial for every person who came in illegally. We have thousands of murderers who came in. They’re going to murder people — they already have.”
Trump then concluded: “If people come into our country illegally, there’s a different standard. They’re illegal. They came in illegally. They get whatever my lawyers say.”
Kilmar Abrego Garcia
The conversation turned to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man who entered the US illegally and was later deported despite being under a protective order. Moran pointed out that the government acknowledged in court that sending Garcia back to El Salvador was a mistake.
Trump responded, strongly defending the action, saying: “The person you’re talking about, you’re making him sound... this is an MS-13 gang member, a tough guy who’s been in lots of skirmishes. He beat the hell out of his wife, and she was terrified to even talk about him. This is not some innocent, wonderful gentleman from Maryland.”
Moran, undeterred, countered: “I’m not saying he’s a good guy. It’s about the rule of law. The order from the Supreme Court stands, sir.”
Trump interrupted, shifting focus: “He came into our country illegally. I was elected to fix a problem that was created by a very incompetent man, a man you always said was wonderful—a genius. But now, you and the media are finally admitting how much of a mistake it was. A man who allowed open borders and let millions of people flow into the country.”
The Ukraine-Russia war
Trump was asked about the ongoing war in Ukraine, and he didn’t hold back with his views. “Ukraine is a very serious, very tough situation,” he said. “And this is Biden's war. This is not my war.”
He criticised the handling of the conflict, saying: “It’s been badly handled by the Biden administration. It’s been badly handled all the way around.”
Trump added that he was trying to address the crisis due to the staggering number of casualties, estimating: “Probably close to 5,000 young soldiers a week are being killed — Russian and Ukrainian alike.”
He also highlighted the financial burden on the US, saying: “We also spend a tremendous amount of money in Ukraine, and Europe should be spending much more than us. They're not. They're spending much less.”
What about his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin? Trump said: “I don’t trust a lot of people,” including Putin. However, he credited his influence with preventing further Russian expansion: “His dream was to take over the whole country. I think because of me, he’s not going to do that.”
Trump expressed his disapproval of the war, saying: “It’s a war that never should have happened. It did happen because of incompetent people.”
While he acknowledged the missile attacks launched by Russia, he clarified: “I was not happy when I saw Putin shooting missiles into a few towns and cities. That was not something I liked seeing, and I thought it was inappropriate. But I think the whole war is inappropriate.”
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth faced criticism after creating a group chat that included a reporter and leaked sensitive information about upcoming and ongoing missile strikes. These details were deemed highly confidential.
During a subsequent interview, Hegseth was questioned about the incident and whether there had been any consequences for his actions.
Trump responded: “I had a talk with him, and whatever I said, I probably wouldn't be inclined to tell you. But we had a good talk. He's a talented guy. He's young. He's smart, highly educated. And I think he’s going to be a very good defense secretary—hopefully a great one—but he'll definitely be a very good one.”
