President Trump to Kaitlan Collins You're the Story Now!!! Lashes Out Over Fund Question

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UPDATE

6/4 -- 5:51 AM PT -- A CNN spokesperson tells TMZ ... "Kaitlan Collins is an exceptional journalist, reporting every day from the White House and the field with real depth and tenacity. She skillfully brings that reporting to the anchor chair and CNN platforms every day, which audiences around the world know they can trust.”

President Donald Trump treated an Oval Office policy question like batting practice ... taking a few swings at CNN's Kaitlan Collins instead of the issue she raised.

The fireworks started when POTUS was pressed about a proposed $1.8B anti-weaponization fund -- a massive compensation program for people who claimed they were victims of politically motivated government investigations -- that has since been scrapped following bipartisan criticism.

Watch the clip ... before Trump could get very far into the substance of the question, he turned his attention to Collins.

E. Jean Carrol Trump Accuser Under Federal Investigation

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E. Jean Carroll, the former magazine columnist who accused President Trump of sexual assault, is the target of a federal criminal investigation ... according to multiple reports.

The investigation is said to be looking into whether Carroll committed perjury in testimony as part of her two civil lawsuits against Trump.

Carroll sued Trump, claiming he sexually abused her in the 1990s in a New York City department store. She sued him again in 2019 for defamation after he denied the alleged assault, saying she wasn't his type and claiming she made it all up to help sell her book.

Spencer Pratt Jesus Christ Is My Political Guiding Light!!!

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Spencer Pratt -- the reality star turned Los Angeles mayoral candidate -- has one hell of a political role model ... Jesus Christ himself!

That's right ... CNN anchor Elex Michaelson asked Spencer if he has a political role model during their interview Thursday on "The Story Is with Elex Michaelson."

And Spencer bluntly responded, "Jesus Christ. He was a politician." Elex seemed a bit surprised as he cracked a smile, before changing gears and asking which MODERN politician Spencer is drawn to.

CNN's Abby Phillip Baby No. 2 Is On The Way!!!

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Huge congrats are in order for CNN anchor Abby Phillip -- she’s expecting baby No. 2 with husband Marcus Richardson!

Phillip says they're preparing to welcome a baby boy later this year ... while also opening up about the emotional journey behind expanding their family ... explaining they were able to conceive this time through IVF.

Despite the physically and emotionally demanding process, Abby told PEOPLE they’re feeling incredibly grateful things worked out in what she called "God’s perfect timing" ... while also keeping hope in her heart for families still navigating similar fertility journeys.

Jane Fonda Honors Ted Turner in Loving Post

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Jane Fonda has shared a loving goodbye to her ex-husband Ted Turner ... saying he had a big life and brilliant mind.

The actress posted to social media Wednesday following CNN's announcement of their founder's passing ... and she shared a photo of the two holding one another.

She dropped a long caption in which she heaped praise on her ex-husband ... noting he was the first man who could really take care of her.

Ex-CNN Anchor Brooke Baldwin Drops Bombshell Revelation of Sexual Assault ... After Years of Shame

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Former CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin is opening up about a deeply personal experience she says has haunted her for more than two decades ... revealing she believes she was sexually assaulted after her drink was allegedly spiked during a spring break trip to Los Angeles.

Baldwin detailed the shocking account in a lengthy Substack essay published Monday ... saying the incident happened when she was just 21 years old.

According to Baldwin, she was on a 2001 spring break trip when she and a friend hit the Polo Lounge at The Beverly Hills Hotel ... but after her friend left, Baldwin says two "much older men" approached and offered her a drink.

Donald Trump RIP CNN Founder Ted Turner BUT ...

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Donald Trump is using Ted Turner's death to bash CNN ... saying the late media mogul lost the network in his company's merger with Time Warner, and the new owners ruined it.

POTUS took to Truth Social shortly after Turner's death to highlight the businessman -- calling him one of the greatest to ever do it.

However, Trump laments what he thinks CNN has become in recent years ... claiming Time Warner's ownership of the network "destroyed it" by turning it totally "woke."

Eric Swalwell Accused of Rape By Former Staffer

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A former staffer for Eric Swalwell told CNN the congressman raped her back in 2024.

CNN ran the interview Friday afternoon ... hiding the woman's face to protect her anonymity while she told a story about meeting up with Swalwell for a drink in 2024.

This woman says she went to the bathroom at one point in the evening and completely blacked out ... only remembering a snippet of the night's events -- during which she says she remembers trying to force Swalwell off of her and telling him she didn't consent to sex with him.

Michael J. Fox CNN Said I'm Dead ... How Do I Figure Out If They're Right???

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Michael J. Fox says CNN's premature death post about him really sent him into a tailspin ... not because it hurt his feelings, but because he needed to figure out if they were right!

The actor posted to Threads about CNN sharing a remembrance tribute in his honor on Wednesday ... and, he asked his followers how they would react to turning on the TV and finding out CNN is reporting their death.

Fox wondered if he should turn the channel to MSNBC -- or "whatever they are calling themselves these days," a fun crack about the name change to MSNOW -- or call his wife ... or even pour scalding water on his lap to see if it hurts.

Nancy Guthrie Reward Demand Claims Kidnapper Is 'International'

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Another clue about Nancy Guthrie's potential kidnapper is tucked into an email from a man who claims he knows the individual who abducted Nancy ... and it sounds like the suspect may have crossed the border.

The latest money demand sent to TMZ ends with this ... "for the man hunt of the main individual that can give you all the answers and be prepared to go International."

It sounds to us like the guy demanding the $100,000 FBI reward implies that Nancy's kidnapper is hiding out in Mexico.

Nancy was abducted from her home near Tucson, Arizona ... and Mexico is a short drive south.

It's unlikely the kidnappers would have taken Nancy on a commercial jet ... that would require ID and the jig would be up. Plus, a previous ransom note sent by the alleged kidnapper themselves indicated Nancy was within a 700-mile radius of Tucson, which further supports the theory this kidnapper may be in Mexico.

Our sources tell us the FBI is hyper focused on the ransom note we received ... and they're also very interested in this latest batch of emails demanding bitcoin in return for information on Nancy's kidnapper.

The phrase "the main individual" is also significant ... it clearly suggest there are accomplices.

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THIRD NOTE RECEIVED

Harvey Levin broke it all down on CNN in a segment Friday evening ... check out the clip here for the latest twist in this bizarre case.

Donald Trump Ask Me About Epstein? How About You Try Smiling More!

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President Donald Trump attacked a female reporter for "not smiling" on Tuesday ... after she asked him about the most recent release of Epstein Files material.

Watch the CNN clip here ... during a press conference Tuesday in the Oval Office, CNN Anchor and White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins asked Trump if he'd read through the latest massive trove of documents.

Trump answered, "No, I have a lot of things I'm doing."

Collins pressed him, saying some alleged victims' names were not redacted.

Trump said ... "I think it's really time for the country to get on to something else really, now that nothing came out about me, other than it was a conspiracy against me, literally, by Epstein and other people."

The New York Times found at least 38,000 references to Trump, Melania Trump, Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, and other related words.

Collins followed up with a question about people saying they want justice from the investigation. Trump responded by calling Collins "the worst reporter."

Trump said, "You know she's a young woman ... I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile. I’ve known you for 10 years. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a smile on your face. You know why you're not smiling? Because you know you're not telling the truth."

Trump kept going, calling CNN a "dishonest organization" that should be "ashamed" of Collins.

Collins pointed out she was asking about survivors of sexual abuse.

He's insulted Collins specifically during both his terms in office, most recently in a December Truth Social post -- misspelling her name "Caitlin Collin’s" -- calling her "Stupid and Nasty."

And it's not the first time Trump's attacked a reporter for asking him about the Epstein Files ... he called Bloomberg White House Correspondent Catherine Lucey "piggy" after she  asked him about the files in November.

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GOES IN ON REPORTER

Men telling women to "smile more" is widely considered offensive, particularly in the workplace, and it's apparently common ... "98% of women reported being told to smile at work sometime during the course of their careers, and 15% said the request to smile on demand happens weekly for them, if not more frequently," according to Entrepreneur.

Don Lemon Gets Standing Ovation After His Arrest at Pre-Grammy Party

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ROARING CROWD

Don Lemon was welcomed with a rousing standing ovation at Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy Awards party at the Beverly Hilton Hotel Saturday ... after his hugely controversial arrest.

As you know ... Lemon was arrested Thursday night in Los Angeles for allegedly co-conspiring with protesters to disrupt a church service in Minneapolis. Of course, Lemon contends that -- as a journalist -- he was just reporting on the events taking place.

The Trump administration seems to have turned Don into a folk hero of sorts, representing the fight against what many view as an assault on the institutions of America's democracy.

CNN's Veronica Miracle 'I Can't Breathe!!!' Teargassed, Hit by Rubber Bullet

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Former CNN host Don Lemon got hit with federal charges for reporting from an ICE protest, but he's getting one-upped by CNN reporter Veronica Miracle ... 'cause she just got hit with tear gas during her wild live shot from an ICE protest.

Check out this footage that just aired on CNN ... Veronica is reporting live from an ICE protest Friday in downtown Los Angeles when all of a sudden the crowd is tear gassed ... and she gets a face full of chemical irritants.

Veronica toughs it out and continues with her report ... and it looks like she also got hit by a non-lethal round of some kind.

Chevy Chase Doctors Put Him Into Coma For 8 Days ... Doctor Warned Family 'Might Not Get Him Back'

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Chevy Chase was put into a coma by doctors for more than a week after his heart failed in 2021, friends and family of the star revealed in a new documentary.

The actor and his loved ones gave extensive interviews for CNN's new documentary, "I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not" according to Variety.

Chevy's wife, Jayni Chase, says in the new doc that she took her husband to the emergency room because they didn't know what was wrong with him ... which was when his heart just stopped.

'House of Dynamite' USA's Missile Defense System is Faulty ... Film is Accurate, Expert Warns

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UNFORTUNATELY, THE MOVIE IS RIGHT!!!

The Pentagon has called BS on Netflix's "A House of Dynamite," saying its depiction of America's capability to strike down a nuclear attack is wildly inaccurate ... but a national security expert is raising red flags.

Fred Kaplan, a political journalist and former defense-policy adviser, joined CNN on Tuesday and said Kathryn Bigelow's war thriller is actually quite accurate, with its line stating America's $50 billion nuclear missile defense is accurate half the time.

He also slammed the Pentagon for the "dangerous" act of purposefully misleading top officials in a mid-month internal memorandum obtained by Bloomberg that claims the pricey system of interceptors has 100% accuracy.

Van Jones On Charlie Kirk He Wasn't For Censorship, Civil War ... I Have Proof!

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HE WANTED DIALOGUE, NOT VIOLENCE

Van Jones says Charlie Kirk sent him a message about getting together to respectfully disagree about some major issues the day before he died ... and it underscored what Kirk was all about.

Van shared the alleged DM from Charlie with Anderson Cooper on CNN ... and it's basically Charlie reaching out to get Van to debate him on the Charlotte train stabbing.

Van and Charlie had been going back and forth over whether the Ukrainian refugee who was killed was attacked because she was white ... and the beef was heated. But Van says Charlie reached out to have a civilized and gentlemanly discussion.