CNN’s Kaitlan Collins delivered a sharp, six-word clapback to President Donald Trump on Saturday, December 6, 2025, after the commander-in-chief unleashed a misspelled, blistering tirade on Truth Social, branding her “Caitlin Collin’s of Fake News CNN, always Stupid and Nasty” for reportedly questioning the ballooning costs of his ambitious White House ballroom renovation project.
The feud erupted when Trump, in a lengthy Saturday morning post, accused Collins of badgering him about the expansion’s price tag, which has reportedly surged from an initial $200 million estimate to $300 million amid design changes and a new architect. “Caitlin Collin’s of Fake News CNN, always Stupid and Nasty, asked me why the new Ballroom was costing more money than originally thought one year ago,” Trump fumed, claiming the upgrades—doubling the size and enhancing “quality of finishes”—are “under budget and ahead of schedule, as my jobs always are.” He insisted the project is “fully paid by private donations,” listing donors like Amazon, Apple, Google, and Lockheed Martin, while slamming CNN for “low ratings” and “corrupt” ownership.
Collins, 33, CNN’s Chief White House Correspondent and host of The Source, swiftly responded via Instagram Story, sharing a screenshot of Trump’s post with a pointed correction: “Technically my question was about Venezuela.” The quip referenced her actual line of inquiry during a Kennedy Center press gaggle on Friday night, where she pressed Trump on his FIFA peace prize amid escalating U.S. military strikes against Venezuelan drug boats—strikes critics have labeled potential war crimes. The ballroom topic arose only briefly in her on-air segment, where she noted the crane visible behind her at the White House and mentioned the cost overrun based on a recent New York Times report.
Trump’s attack fits a pattern of targeting female journalists with personal insults, drawing swift condemnation. “This is classic Trump—misspelling her name while raging about facts,” tweeted Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who has criticized the ballroom as a “taxpayer vanity project” despite Trump’s private-funding claims. CNN issued a statement: “Kaitlan Collins is an exceptional journalist, reporting daily from the White House with depth and tenacity. We stand by her.” Collins, unfazed, continued her Saturday broadcast, quipping off-air to colleagues about the “presidential spelling bee fail.”
The ballroom controversy, announced in July 2025, involves demolishing the East Wing to create a 90,000-square-foot event space—larger than the residence itself—for galas and state functions. Initial plans called for $200 million, but scope creep, including a new architect (James McCrery II stepped back in November), pushed it to $300 million. Donors like Meta and Microsoft have pledged, but Democrats like Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) demand transparency: “Private funds or not, this is presidential excess at its worst.”
Social media lit up, with #KaitlanStrong trending alongside memes of Trump’s post corrected in red pen. “From ‘stable genius’ to misspelling ‘Collins’—peak 2025,” joked @LateNightLaughs (50k likes). Supporters rallied: “Kaitlan asked real questions; Trump can’t handle facts” (@CNNFanClub, 40k retweets). The incident underscores Trump’s ongoing war with the press, from calling CNN “fake news” to his recent “quiet, piggy” remark at Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey.
For Collins, it’s business as usual. “Journalism isn’t about being liked—it’s about truth,” she told The New York Times in a post-broadcast interview. As the White House crane looms, Trump’s rant may have backfired, reminding America why Collins remains one of the most trusted voices in a divided media landscape. The ballroom builds on; the feud? Far from over.
