{"id":2571358,"date":"2026-02-19T08:45:02","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T13:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T08:47:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T13:47:27","slug":"ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/","title":{"rendered":"Even The WH Press Corps Laughs At Ed O&#8217;Keefe&#8217;s TDS"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2571358&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Federalist piece by Brianna Lyman centers on CBS News reporter Ed O\u2019Keefe\u2019s White House briefing question about Trump being \u201cfalsely called racist,\u201d tying it to a Trump post praising Jesse Jackson in wich Trump said he has been \u201cfalsely and consistently called a racist.\u201d The author frames O\u2019Keefe\u2019s question as a pursuit of what he sees as a basic truth, and portrays the moment as evidence of what she calls widespread media gaslighting.<\/p>\n<p>The article argues that mainstream outlets, including CBS News, have repeatedly accused Trump of racism\u2014such as claims about a \u201chistory of inflaming racial tensions\u201d and racist tweets\u2014yet it contends those reports are either false or misleading in how they were presented. It cites examples from past coverage and anecdotes of Trump supporters standing by him, plus <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-federal-court-refuses-request-to-dig-into-jurors-cellphone\/\" title=\"US F...eral Court Refuses Request to Dig into Juror\u2019s Cellphone\">social-media posts<\/a> that accompanied these reports. Ultimately, the piece asserts that O\u2019Keefe\u2019s reporting supports Trump\u2019s claim of being falsely labeled racist, while suggesting he shoudl scrutinize his own archives before drawing conclusions. the author, Brianna Lyman, is an elections correspondent for The Federalist.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TrumpWarRoom\/status\/2024194509303685409?s=20\">Trump War Room\/ X <\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Ed%20O%E2%80%99Keefe%E2%80%99s%20Trump%20Derangement%20Is%20So%20Bad,%20Even%20The%20White%20House%20Press%20Corps%20Is%20Laughing%20At%20Him&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Ed%20O%E2%80%99Keefe%E2%80%99s%20Trump%20Derangement%20Is%20So%20Bad,%20Even%20The%20White%20House%20Press%20Corps%20Is%20Laughing%20At%20Him&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Ed%20O%E2%80%99Keefe%E2%80%99s%20Trump%20Derangement%20Is%20So%20Bad,%20Even%20The%20White%20House%20Press%20Corps%20Is%20Laughing%20At%20Him&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/ed-okeefes-trump-derangement-is-so-bad-even-the-white-house-press-corps-is-laughing-at-him\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>CBS News&rsquo; Ed O&rsquo;Keefe learned a new concept Wednesday: facts. <\/p>\n<p>During Wednesday&rsquo;s White House press briefing, O&rsquo;Keefe asked White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt for examples of President Donald Trump being &ldquo;falsely called racist.&rdquo; O&rsquo;Keefe was referencing a <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/116086206069142759\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">post<\/a> Trump made the day prior honoring Jesse Jackson, in which the president wrote that he has been &ldquo;falsely and consistently called a racist by the scoundrels and lunatics on the radical left &hellip;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-76143206\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It was a statement of fact &mdash; but for O&rsquo;Keefe, it was apparently a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >mystery worth investigative journalism<\/a>. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"> <span class=\"b8ZdtwMm09JNmo8CN2rOv3ZY6EUwxPjflxWBEFquHS0l7G4FRdV5MYALznabKDceWT6I91UHgDXX7TGQ2fhvyOeczkoIry5hV1\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Reporter: &#8220;Where or when does the President believe he has been falsely called racist?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Press Sec. Karoline Leavitt: &#8220;You are kidding, right?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The fake news media gaslighting is unbelievable.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9iAS3FgL5v\">pic.twitter.com\/9iAS3FgL5v<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/libsoftiktok\/status\/2024239039654609035?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 18, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re kidding, right?&rdquo; Leavitt said, to which the whole room burst out into laughter. <\/p>\n<p>The irony is that CBS News, O&rsquo;Keefe&rsquo;s own network, spent years falsely accusing Trump of being a racist.<\/p>\n<p>Consider <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/from-birtherism-to-racist-tweets-trumps-history-of-inflaming-racial-tensions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">July 16, 2019<\/a>, when CBS News claimed Trump had a &ldquo;history of inflaming racial tensions&rdquo; and falsely accused Trump of being &ldquo;forgiving of white nationalists&rdquo; after the 2017 Charlottesville rally. CBS News cited Trump saying that there were &ldquo;very fine people, on both sides,&rdquo; but deceptively cut the quote to leave out the part where Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/06\/27\/biden-peddles-very-fine-people-hoax-after-even-fact-checkers-admitted-it-was-a-lie\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not talking about the neo-Nazis and the white nationalists, because they should be condemned totally.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>It was a false accusation, to say the least. <\/p>\n<p>Then CBS News&rsquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/full-transcript-of-face-the-nation-on-july-21-2019\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Margaret Brennan<\/a> declared on July 21, 2019 that &ldquo;the President&rsquo;s racist tweets have mobilized both sides.&rdquo; Trump said members of the Squad should go back to where they came from, later adding in a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/realDonaldTrump\/status\/1150381394234941448?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">post<\/a> on X: &ldquo;So interesting to see &lsquo;Progressive&rsquo; Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly&hellip;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Trump wasn&rsquo;t being racist, he was being a realist pointing out that these foreign-born, America-hating Congresswomen hail from countries that barely have a functioning government. Another false accusation. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/trump-tweets-supporters-stand-by-president-amid-racist-tweets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CBS News<\/a> wrote on July 16, 2019: &ldquo;President Trump has refused to walk back his racist tweets targeting a group of Democratic congresswomen of color in part because he believes his supporters will stand by him.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>O&rsquo;Keefe himself reported on that same day from Des Moines, Iowa that Trump supporters were standing by the president. <\/p>\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/edokeefe\/status\/1151100535426211840?s=20\">tweet<\/a> promoting the article, O&rsquo;Keefe said: &ldquo;WATCH: Democrats strike back at Trump&rsquo;s racist tweets while his supporters stand by him. Our report from Des Moines&hellip;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In a separate tweet posted that same day, O&rsquo;Keefe <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/edokeefe\/status\/1151100189953986560?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a>: &ldquo;WATCH: President Trump receives backlash and support over his racist tweets.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Of course these are just a few of the many false accusations lobbed at the president by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-comms-team-gets-a-pass-where-trump-administration-would-have-had-a-scandal\/\" title=\"Biden Comms Team Gets A Pass Where ... Administration Would Have Had A Scandal\">left-wing media<\/a>, Democrats, and commentators over the years.<\/p>\n<p>MSNBC&rsquo;s Lawrence O&rsquo;Donnell <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/lawrence-o-donnell-declares-trump-035917845.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> Trump is the &ldquo;most racist&rdquo; president that never owned slaves. Don Lemon <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/reel\/909734378663798\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">accused<\/a> Trump of being &ldquo;racist&rdquo; in 2018 while still employed by CNN.<\/p>\n<p>O&rsquo;Keefe&rsquo;s own reporting proves the President was right to claim he&rsquo;s been falsely accused of being a racist. Yet somehow, he still asked the question. Maybe before wandering into a press briefing to ask a basic question about reality, O&rsquo;Keefe should check his own archives. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Brianna Lyman<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/briannalyman2\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@briannalyman2<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/briannalyman\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/cbs-news\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">CBS News<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/charlottesville-hoax\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">charlottesville hoax<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/ed-okeefe\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Ed O&rsquo;Keefe<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/karoline-leavitt\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Karoline Leavitt<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/margaret-brennan\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Margaret Brennan<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During a White House briefing, CBS News\u2019 Ed O\u2019Keefe asked Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt for examples of times the President has been \u201cfalsely called racist.\u201d He cited Trump\u2019s post honoring Jesse Jackson, in which Trump said he has been \u201cfalsely and consistently called a racist by the scoundrels and lunatics on the radical left.\u201d Leavitt responded, \u201cYou\u2019re kidding, right?\u201d as the room laughed. The piece notes the irony that O\u2019Keefe\u2019s own network, CBS News, has long accused Trump of racism.<\/p>\n<p>It goes on to recall several 2019 CBS segments that the author says misrepresented Trump, such as claims that he inflamed racial tensions or forgave white nationalists after Charlottesville, including a chopped excerpt of Trump\u2019s remarks. It also recalls Margaret Brennan\u2019s claim that Trump\u2019s tweets mobilized both sides, Trump\u2019s criticisms of progressive congresswomen, and O\u2019Keefe\u2019s own reporting about supporters backing the president. The article argues these were false accusations by the left-wing media, and that O\u2019Keefe\u2019s reporting arguably proved Trump\u2019s point even as he asked about \u201cfacts.\u201d It ends with a jab that he might ought to check his own archives before asking such questions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":2571359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Screenshot-2026-02-18-at-8.07.58-PM-scaled-e1771463589483.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[74108,5157,4188,5894,71977],"class_list":["post-2571358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-ed-o-keefe","tag-journalism","tag-media","tag-politics","tag-white-house-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Screenshot-2026-02-18-at-8.07.58-PM-scaled-e1771463589483.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2571358"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571358\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2571362,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571358\/revisions\/2571362"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2571359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2571358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2571358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2571358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}