Donald Trump mocks reporter who assumed he knew his son’s career
President Donald Trump gave a brutally blunt answer to a reporter at a White House event: RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The awkward moment unfolded Friday during the president’s highly anticipated “Save College Sports” roundtable, when conservative talk show host John Fredericks tried to settle a question by referencing his son’s baseball career.
“As you know, my son Joe is a high-level D-1 athlete and third-year relief pitcher at the University of Maryland,” Fredericks said as he addressed Trump.
The president immediately interrupted him.
“How would I know?” Trump responded, stopping the host mid-sentence.
Laughter rang through the room as Trump doubled his punch.
“He said, ‘As you know,’” the commander-in-chief joked. “I don’t even know who that guy is.”
The awkward exchange quickly went viral on social media, with viewers divided over the moment.
Some users mocked Fredericks for assuming the president would know details about his son’s athletic career.
“Honestly, a good look into the mind of a journalist,” someone wrote on X. “Expect the most famous man on earth to know small details about his personal life.”
Another added: “Who do these people think they are? He kills them every time.”
A third viewer summed up the exchange simply: “Just brutal.”
However, not everyone saw the moment the same way. Some suggested that Trump may have spoken to Fredericks about his son before and simply forgot.
“Chances are Trump knew at some point and forgot because it’s not about him,” one person wrote.
Another user defended the radio host, saying: “I could tell it was John Fredericks and yes he is proud that his son got a little carried away but he is a good guy.”
Frederick’s son, Joseph, is currently a pitcher for the University of Maryland baseball team.
The 21-year-old relief pitcher is having a challenging 2026 season, posting an 18.90 ERA across five appearances.
The viral exchange took place during Trump’s roundtable discussion, which focused on the future of college athletics and the growing debate over student-athlete compensation.
The event brought together conference commissioners, athletic directors and other key figures from the college sports world to discuss the proposed SCORE Act, which aims to impose stricter federal restrictions on paying college athletes.
During the roundtable discussion, Trump also called on another reporter who asked a question about the escalating conflict with Iran.
“It sounds like the Russians are now helping Iran target and attack Americans,” said Fox News senior White House correspondent Peter Doocy.
Trump, however, brushed aside the question.
“That’s an easy problem compared to what we’re doing here,” the president shot back. The comment provoked some laughter from those in the room.
The president then turned directly to Doocy and criticized the question itself.
“Can I be honest? It’s just… I have a lot of respect for you,” Trump said. ‘You’ve always been very nice to me. What a stupid question that is at this point. We’re talking about something else.’
