SAEDNEWS: Donald Trump clashed with an Australian journalist after being asked about his business dealings while in office, accusing him of “hurting Australia” and threatening to raise the matter with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. The tense exchange has added fuel to already strained U.S.–Australia relations.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump found himself in yet another fiery exchange with the press this week — this time not with American reporters, but with an Australian journalist whose questions triggered a surprisingly personal outburst.
The incident unfolded when John Lyons, a veteran reporter from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), asked Trump a pointed but straightforward question: how much wealthier had he become since returning to the White House in January?
Trump’s response was defensive and sharp. “I don’t know,” he said, claiming his children were responsible for managing the Trump Organization’s business interests. But then came the unusual twist: Trump accused Lyons of harming his home country.
“In my opinion, you are hurting Australia very much right now, and they want to get along with me,” Trump declared.
He went even further, threatening to raise the matter directly with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whom he said he would be meeting “very soon.”
“I’m going to tell him about you,” Trump warned. “You set a very bad tone.”
As Lyons attempted a follow-up question, Trump raised his index finger to his lips and snapped, “Quiet,” before moving on to another reporter. The tense moment underscored Trump’s long-running combative relationship with the media — one that now seems to extend beyond American borders.
For Lyons, however, the confrontation was baffling. Speaking afterward, he said it was “an absurd notion” that polite, legitimate questioning could somehow damage relations between the U.S. and Australia.
“For me, it was a perfectly normal thing to do,” Lyons told ABC Radio. “I don’t think the questions were provocative. They were fair, based on research, and not asked in an abusive way.”
The clash comes at a delicate moment in U.S.–Australia relations. Prime Minister Albanese has been eager to meet with Trump for months after a previously scheduled sit-down was abruptly canceled when Trump cut short his attendance at the G20 summit in June to address the Middle East conflict.
Now, Albanese is set to attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he and Trump are expected to cross paths.
The tensions are compounded by Trump’s recent moves:
A review of the massive Aukus submarine deal, a £176 billion ($239 billion) security agreement between the U.S., U.K., and Australia.
The imposition of a 10% tariff on all Australian exports to the U.S., which Albanese criticized as “not the act of a friend.”
Against this backdrop, Trump’s public rebuke of an Australian journalist — and his threat to raise it with Albanese — adds a new layer of strain.
Shortly after the exchange, the official White House social media account reposted Trump’s remarks, captioning the clip:
“Trump smacks down a rude foreign Fake News loser.”
The language mirrored Trump’s long-established branding of the press as “Fake News,” but this time aimed at an international journalist representing one of America’s closest allies.
The ABC confirmed Lyons’ questions were part of a broader investigation by its flagship program Four Corners, which is examining Trump’s business interests since returning to power.
For critics, the exchange raises questions about Trump’s transparency regarding his finances and his willingness to conflate personal grievances with international diplomacy. For supporters, it was another example of Trump pushing back against what they see as hostile media narratives.
Either way, the spectacle is likely to reverberate in both Washington and Canberra — and may well become a talking point when Trump and Albanese finally sit down together.
