President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the Justice Department could go after journalists after Attorney General Pam Bondi vowed to prosecute "hate speech" offenders, escalating an already contentious debate over speech, enforcement and platform content following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The confrontation came during a heated back-and-forth in the West Wing with ABC News chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl before the president departed for the United Kingdom. Karl pressed Trump about Bondi’s recent remarks on prosecuting what she described as "hate speech," and the president responded by singling out journalists as potential targets for enforcement.
On a recent podcast, Bondi said prosecutors would pursue cases of "hate speech" regardless of political affiliation, saying, "There's free speech and then there's hate speech, and there is no place, especially now, especially after what happened to Charlie, in our society. We will absolutely target you, go after you if you are targeting anyone with hate speech, anything, and that's across the aisle."
During the exchange at the White House, Trump told Karl, "She'd probably go after people like you! Because you treat me so unfairly. It's hate! You have a lot of hate in your heart!" The president also referenced a prior legal settlement with ABC, saying, "Maybe they'll come after ABC. Well, ABC paid me $16 million dollars recently for a form of hate speech, right? Your company paid me $16 million for a form of hate speech, so maybe they'll have to go after you."
Last December, ABC agreed to a settlement in a defamation dispute with Trump that included a $15 million payment to the former president's presidential library and $1 million for legal fees, according to statements surrounding the case. ABC issued a public expression of regret over incorrect on-air comments by an anchor that were the subject of the dispute.
Bondi's remarks and Trump’s comments come amid pressure from some conservative lawmakers who have called on social media platforms to remove footage related to Kirk's killing. Representatives Anna Paulina Luna, Lauren Boebert and Clay Higgins have demanded platform executives remove videos they called "horrifying"; Luna posted on X that she was calling on chief executives of several platforms to take them down.
The attorney general's proposal to criminally pursue "hate speech" has prompted debate across political lines. Supporters of expanded enforcement say stronger measures are needed in the wake of violence; critics, including some conservative social media users and commentators, warned that any new prosecutorial authority could be used by a future Democratic administration against right-leaning speakers.
The Justice Department has not announced any formal changes to policy or new prosecutorial standards since Bondi's comments. The episode adds to continuing tensions between the White House, members of the conservative movement and national news organizations over media coverage, legal disputes and how authorities should respond to violent acts tied to political motives.