After Trump’s smile remark, Collins responds: ‘I smile when it’s appropriate’

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: CNN firebrand Kaitlan Collins has responded after Trump said he didn’t think he had ever seen her smile, a remark made during a tense Oval Office exchange earlier this month.

Collins addressed the comment during an appearance on 'The Late Show' with Stephen Colbert, where host Stephen Colbert asked about Trump’s criticism on Tuesday, February 17.

'A lot of women can identify with that moment'

Speaking to Colbert, Collins said the remark did not shock her in the moment.

“I don’t think it surprised me in the moment of the attack,” she said. “The president has called me a lot of names. He’s gone after me and tried to deflect from the questions that we’re asking.”

Still, she reflected on the context of the comment.

“He is someone who is often politically savvy or tied in with what his base wants,” she said. “In that moment, I was thinking if he had said that in response to a different question, I think it would have had a different reaction.”

Collins added, “I think a lot of women can identify with that moment and that feeling. I think it was actually the question that is what generated so many headlines out of that because my question was about survivors. It wasn’t even accusatory of the president.”

She also addressed the substance of Trump’s remark directly.

“I don’t think it’s a controversial opinion that you shouldn’t smile when you’re asking questions about a crime,” she said, drawing applause from the audience. Colbert responded, “That’s reasonable”.

Collins said she had since been “inundated” with messages, including from her father, sending her photos of herself smiling.

“The pictures show I do indeed smile, when it’s appropriate,” she joked, grinning at Colbert.

The tense Oval office exchange

The moment occurred on February 3, when Collins, who serves as CNN’s chief White House correspondent and anchor of 'The Source' asked Trump what he would “say to the survivors” of Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump responded sharply saying, “You are the worst reporter. No wonder CNN has no ratings because of people like you,” he said, before adding, “You know she’s a young woman. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile.”

He continued, “I’ve known you for 10 years, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a smile on your face,” as Collins noted she was asking about Epstein’s survivors. The exchange quickly made headlines.