Kaitlan Collins Hints Karoline Leavitt Bruised Her Ego In Press Briefing Spat

There seems to be no end in sight in the fiery feud between Kaitlan Collins and Karoline Leavitt. On October 6, the CNN anchor and the White House press secretary clashed again during a press briefing, sparring over Donald Trump's deployment of National Guard troops to Portland and Chicago amid pushback from city officials. It all started when Collins questioned the need for military enforcement, citing Portland's police chief Bob Day, who had dismissed the president's claims of chaos unfolding in Portland — prompting Leavitt to lash out and accuse the journalist of being biased. 

"I would encourage you as a reporter to go on the ground and to take a look for yourself, because there's many members of the press — not press in this room, but independent journalists, some of whom would be invited to the White House very soon to share their stories," Leavitt snapped. She then claimed that these so-called "independent journalists" had reported directly from the scene and witnessed the nightly riots and unlawful assemblies firsthand. "It's on video. You should play it on your show. You have a great opportunity, on primetime on CNN, to show your audience," Leavitt stressed. When the news anchor tried to explain that she was citing Portland's police chief, Leavitt replied before she could finish: "Yeah, but you're probably talking to partisan Democrat officials who are opposed to everything this president does." Oof.

COLLINS: The police chief of Portland says the president's claims don't match up with what's happening on the ground

LEAVITT: I would encourage you as a reporter to go on the ground and to take a look for yourself ... you're probably talking to partisan Democrat officials who... pic.twitter.com/dDUNtahI6I

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 6, 2025

Clips of the tense exchange spread rapidly across X, formerly known as Twitter, including a video shared by Collins, who appeared to have her ego bruised after her latest briefing spat with Leavitt. She clarified under a clip from the Official White House Rapid Response account: "I was quoting the Portland police chief." The incident marks the latest episode in the ongoing Collins versus Leavitt feud, which shows no signs of letting up.

Viewers were divided after Kaitlan Collins and Karoline Leavitt went head-to-head during the press briefing on Monday, October 6. Some applauded Collins for asking the hard questions, while others took Leavitt's side and agreed with her responses. Addressing the news personality, one user on X wrote, "You do know there are videos of the violence, right? It's not hard to find proof. Why deny it and pretend everything is fine?" Another sarcastically said, "Ah yes. Taking state official's word for it," referring to Collins' interview with Portland Police Chief Bob Day. "True reporting. Such journalism." Many, however, also blasted the press secretary for dodging the question and spreading misinformation. "@PressSec your job is to answer the questions. @kaitlancollins asked a reasonable question," a third user pressed. "When you don't have a MAGA approved answer, you spread propaganda. Just answer the questions!" Another X user tweeted: "Leavitt's press strategy: gaslight, deflect, repeat." 

This isn't the first time things between the CNN anchor and the press secretary have gotten especially heated. In March, the two also butted heads when Collins asked Leavitt about Donald Trump's claim that former president Joe Biden had used an autopen to sign official documents during his time in office. "You're a reporter," Leavitt said in response, according to NBC 15 News. "You should find out." She also proved she can't stand Collins during a press briefing after the journalist attempted to follow up on a query. "Kaitlan, I am not taking your follow-up," Leavitt said flatly, before taking questions from another reporter. Seriously, it's giving mean girl vibes!