Washington, Oct 23 — US President Donald Trump on Friday called an NBC News reporter "horrible" during a heated exchange over the Ohio governor's race, defending the use of allegations made by the Democratic candidate's mother in a political advertisement supporting Republican Vivek Ramaswamy.
The confrontation unfolded on the White House South Lawn as Trump fielded questions from reporters before departing for a campaign rally in Florida.
At the centre of the dispute was Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton and statements attributed to her mother questioning her daughter's character and suitability for public office.
Trump argued that the mother's criticism was legitimate campaign material and accused journalists of trying to minimise its political significance.
"The press is embarrassing itself," Trump said.
"You're trying to take a horrible situation for a Democrat and make it look better," he added.
The exchange grew increasingly contentious when a reporter raised questions about Acton's family history, including allegations of sexual abuse involving her stepfather.
Trump said he was unfamiliar with those allegations and insisted that the political issue was what Acton's mother had said publicly about her daughter.
"You don't know that. You don't know anything," Trump said during the exchange.
He maintained that voters had a right to consider the mother's statements when deciding whom to support in the election.
Trump said Acton's mother had appeared on television and made damaging allegations about her daughter.
"Her mother went on television and said that the daughter who's running for governor of Ohio is a liar and a bad person. And that's all I know," he said.
When the reporter identified the news organisation as NBC, Trump attacked the network.
"One of the worst networks you have," he said.
The confrontation escalated as the reporter continued asking about the family circumstances behind the allegations.
"You're a horrible little reporter, aren't you?" Trump said.
He then questioned why journalists were challenging the use of the mother's statements in the campaign.
"If my mother said bad things about me, do you think the Democrats would put it up?" he asked.
Trump also referred directly to Ramaswamy, arguing that the advertisement was politically valuable because the allegations came from the candidate's own mother.
"If I had that ad, I should be so lucky to have an ad like that," he said.
He rejected suggestions that the family history should change how the advertisement was viewed.
Trump said he knew only that Acton's mother had publicly criticised her daughter and opposed her becoming governor.
"To me, that's something that's very much fair game," he said.
The exchange was part of a broader interaction in which Trump discussed the approaching midterm elections, Republican campaign prospects and his efforts to support candidates in several states.
The Ohio governor's race described in the exchange pits Democrat Amy Acton against Republican Vivek Ramaswamy.