White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt probably thought attacking a journalist who asked a legitimate question about Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during Thursday’s press briefing would help her win the hearts and minds of voters. But it doesn’t appear things worked out as she might have hoped, based on the social media reaction to her meltdown at a simple question asked by The Hill’s Niall Stanage. During the briefing, Stanage noted an earlier comment made by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that ICE agents are “doing everything correctly,” before asking Leavitt how that can be when “32 people died in ICE custody last year, 170 US citizens were detained by ICE, and Renee Good was shot in the head and killed by an ICE agent.” Leavitt then asked Stanage a question about Good, the 37-year-old woman shot and killed by an ICE officer while in her car in Minneapolis. “Why was Renee Good unfortunately and tragically killed?” she asked, to which he replied, “Because an ICE agent acted recklessly and killed her unjustifiably.” Leavitt didn’t like the answer and declared, “Oh, OK. So you’re a biased reporter with a left-wing opinion” before going on a tirade where she called Stanage “a left-wing activist” and said he was “posing as a journalist.” When Stanage asked what was inaccurate in what he said, Leavitt ignored him and continued her rant. “Shame on people like you in the media who have a crooked view and have a biased view, and pretend like you’re a real, honest journalist.” Although Leavitt’s lashing-out has gone viral, most of the sympathy was given to Stanage, who many noted asked a legitimate question about Noem’s comment and also responded honestly to her question about what he thought caused Good’s death. This is how Leavitt acts when someone asks her an actual question. https://t.co/h4BghK9Qok — Barry Malone (@malonebarry) January 15, 2026 Solidarity with @NiallStanage , a great journalist asking important questions, something not enough people do that WH briefing room. https://t.co/jk9wmjx1Ao — Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) January 15, 2026 The reporter has the same opinion as the vast majority of Americans. The White House is calling the majority of Americans "left wing hacks" and no one gives a fuck. https://t.co/dt4Sq0OOOp — Ember (@EmberOnAlt) January 15, 2026 She’s not used to being around people who tell the truth. Totally understandable. — John Collins (@Logically_JC) January 15, 2026 Reporters need to figure out how to stand up to a 27 year old https://t.co/QkiMwI5wdE — Matt Rosell (@mattrosell) January 15, 2026 I keep thinking about Pete Hegseth’s confirmation and how every time he was confronted with his own reckless behavior he accused it of being left-wing lies and smears. Anything they don’t like is a left wing lie and smear. Rinse and repeat. — Max Weiss (@maxthegirl) January 15, 2026 Crazy leftists and their ideas about moms not getting shot in the face https://t.co/4fpAxu7UxX — evan loves worf (@esjesjesj) January 15, 2026 Completely unhinged, just like her boss. pic.twitter.com/YRxAwjtKXU — BrooklynDad_Defiant!☮️ (@mmpadellan) January 15, 2026 Why are our tax dollars being spent on this woman and this unprofessional behavior? The irony, when your only communication is to call names, it shows that you lack frontal lobe strength. @PressSec is losing it. No ability to communicate her own thoughts or feelings on a… pic.twitter.com/jJ3dCFRR4g — ₿IGRYAN ? (@BigRyan) January 15, 2026 . @NiallStanage and I don’t know each other well, but I’ve had the pleasure of appearing with him on @NewsNation a few times. We don’t always agree— in fact there have been segments in which he’s been plenty critical of my party. But he’s smart, thoroughly researched, and… https://t.co/FGAsZBItVi — Dan Kanninen (@dkanninen) January 15, 2026 “Oh, ok. So you're a biased reporters with a biased opinion. You're a left-wing hack” Also the “reporters” handpicked by this administration https://t.co/CPYBWGKEDJ pic.twitter.com/kk3taJtGFd — HARD FACTOR (@HardFactorNews) January 15, 2026