White House communications director Steven Cheung tried to discredit a New York Times reporter over the weekend by resurfacing old misconduct allegations against him. Critics quickly turned the attack back on President Donald Trump.
The fight started when Glenn Thrush, who covers the Justice Department and the FBI for the Times, responded to Trump’s latest claim that the 2020 election was “Rigged and Stolen.”
“Big moment for the country,” Thrush wrote. “A president who can’t admit he lost the 2020 election directly controlling the Justice Dept during the 2026 election — and pretty much every person making decisions at DOJ has refused to publicly admit the most fundamental fact: He lost fair and square.”
Cheung didn’t address the substance. Instead, he posted a screenshot of a 2017 Times article headlined “Glenn Thrush, New York Times Reporter, Accused of Sexual Misconduct.” The article reported that the paper had suspended Thrush after four female journalists accused him of inappropriate behavior.
Critics were quick to point out that Cheung’s boss has his own record.
George Conway, the conservative attorney and frequent Trump critic, responded with a 2023 Washington Post headline: “Judge clarifies: Yes, Trump was found to have raped E. Jean Carroll.” A civil jury in New York found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll in 2023, and the presiding judge later wrote that the jury’s finding amounted to rape as the term is commonly understood. Trump denies Carroll’s allegations.
Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) responded with a post that read, “You boss was friends with:” followed by the word “Epstein” repeated hundreds of times, ending with “Epstein infinity.” Kinzinger also posted what appeared to be a close-up image of Cheung.
Former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann needled Cheung directly: “Well they’ll never accuse you of that, will they, Patrick Star?”
Trump has denied any wrongdoing related to Jeffrey Epstein. The two men were friends for years before what Trump has described as a falling-out in the early 2000s.