A CNN Reporter Screamed Over a Teen Hero Lifeguard in the Oval Office — Trump Shut Her Down Cold
The President of the United States invited 16-year-old Ryder Williams to the Oval Office — the boy who made headlines around the world when he rescued a drowning child from rough surf at Seabright Beach in Santa Cruz. Williams sat in the fireside chair normally reserved for foreign dignitaries. The boy he saved, Nathaniel Rai, sat nearby. It was a genuinely American moment: a young man recognized for courage by the president of his country.
Here’s video of the dramatic rescue in California:
And:
CNN’s Kristen Holmes decided to use the occasion to take a political shot. Her question recycled an innuendo that Sen. Jon Ossoff had lobbed the previous week — suggesting Trump preferred traveling with his aide Natalie Harp rather than building the White House ballroom. It was the kind of question that has nothing to do with anything and everything to do with making the president look bad, delivered in the Oval Office in front of a teenage hero and the child whose life he saved.
What a putz:
Trump answered calmly. He explained that the White House was undergoing necessary improvements after years of neglect. Holmes apparently found that unsatisfactory. She then started screaming over other reporters trying to ask questions — a full outburst in the Oval Office in front of Williams and Nathaniel Rai. Trump’s response was four words, delivered four times: “Be quiet. Be quiet.”
Then the fuller version: “You’re very disrespectful in front of this young man… You’re a loud, boisterous person. You’re Fake News. Be quiet. Be quiet. Be quiet. You’re a fake reporter and you report FAKE NEWS.”
The irony is that Holmes’ behavior violated the White House Correspondents’ Association’s own published guidelines — which explicitly call on pool reporters to be respectful and neutral, declare that “disruptive behavior is unacceptable,” and instruct reporters to keep coverage “fair, tasteful and objective.”
The WHCA wrote those rules. Holmes ignored them. In front of a 16-year-old who dove into rough surf to save a drowning child and got invited to the Oval Office as recognition for it.
There’s a reason the press corps’s approval ratings are in the single digits. It’s not because people disagree with their editorial positions. It’s because moments like this happen on camera in real time, in front of a teenage hero who deserved better, and the only person in the room who called it out plainly was the one they spent the past decade calling authoritarian.
Access to the president is a privilege. The Oval Office is not a campaign trail ambush venue. And Ryder Williams — who jumped into the ocean to save a child — deserved the five minutes of presidential recognition he came for without a CNN correspondent using him as a backdrop for political theatrics. Trump told her to be quiet. He was right.
BREAKING: Dolly Parton’s Cause Of Death Revealed: ‘Brief Battle’
Dolly Parton’s death came after a brief battle with cancer, her representatives revealed Tuesday.
The country music legend died Aug. 25 at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville. She was 80.
Parton had been admitted to the cancer center Friday, four days before her death. Her representatives confirmed the cancer diagnosis in a statement to PEOPLE but did not disclose what type she had.
“Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched. Her unmatched generosity reached the lives of countless people whom she would never meet, yet she was always there to offer a helping hand,” the statement read.
“Whether it be the hundreds of millions of books donated through her invaluable Imagination Library or funding research that helped create a lifesaving vaccine used around the world, Dolly’s unconditional love for all people was the guiding force for her lasting impact. After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones,” the statement concluded.
The “Jolene” singer had also been dealing with kidney and autoimmune issues before her death, PEOPLE previously reported.
Just days earlier, Dolly Parton opened up about her declining health and acknowledged that she had put off addressing some medical issues while caring for her husband, Carl.
“As I’ve shared in video messages throughout the past year, I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over [my husband] Carl. You know, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to manage something like this. Back in the early ’80s, I was down for several months with female issues, and I was struggling with my weight at the time too, so it’s not like I haven’t been through hard times with my health,” Parton told PEOPLE.
Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, announced her death in an Instagram video Tuesday on behalf of the Parton and Owens family.
“My name is Bryan Seaver, son of Cassie Parton, and I’m representing the Parton and Owens family today announcing the passing of my aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean, Sister, Sis and Granny to one generation and Gigi to the next,” he says in the video.
Seaver, who served as Parton’s head of security for more than two decades, said she had asked him years earlier to deliver the announcement.
“This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality,” he continued. “As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now.”
Seaver said the moment brought immense pride and heartbreak, but he took comfort in his faith that Parton had been reunited with Carl and other loved ones.
Seaver added: “It is an honor, an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly. Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents and countless othe
Shocking 'truth' behind Prince Harry's decision to quit major role
Prince Harry should have "resigned in disgrace" from the board of a controversial African wildlife charity, a commentator says. James Walker makes the bombshell remark in Wednesday's episode of this publication's podcast, Daily Expresso.
He and the show's host, JJ Anisiobi, delve into the Duke of Sussex's dramatic decision to step down from African Parks. James, commenting on the controversy, said: "When you hear about this stuff and how long it's been going on for, you should be resigning in disgrace. [Harry] should be saying: 'I'm not touching that with a barge pole. That is a failed entity. We're going nowhere near it'.
"But no. He's still saying he's going to 'support their mission'. And again this Caroline Pearce, executive director of Survival International, goes on to say: 'His departure doesn't undo that record'.
"She alleged that African Parks was aware of the abuses for years, but it was only after Survival complained to Harry that the charity finally commissioned an investigation."
James added: "Well, she's got a point."
It emerged on Monday (August 24) that Harry was no longer a board member of the wildlife charity.
The conservation organisation has admitted that human rights abuses were committed by its rangers against members of the semi-nomadic Baka group in Congo-Brazzaville.
African Parks has said since that it has improved its safeguarding processes both in the Odzala-Kokoua National Park and institutionally.
Its admission followed an independent human rights investigation into allegations guards managed and paid by the charity had beaten, raped and tortured indigenous people in Odzala-Kokoua National Park.
Harry was president of the charity for six years before he became a member of its board of directors in 2023.
A spokesman for the Duke said he remains an active and avid supporter of African Parks. He added: "The Duke is proud of his 10 years with African Parks and fully supports the ongoing strengthening of its board.
"His commitment to conservation in Africa continues and he remains a supporter of African Parks’ mission."
Human rights organisation, Survival International, said it had been calling on Harry to step down from African Parks for years.
The group's director, Caroline Pearce, said in a statement: "It’s outrageous that for 10 years Prince Harry has served African Parks while the organisation has been responsible for abuse and violence against Indigenous people.
"His departure doesn't undo that record — African Parks itself must now be held accountable, and must abandon this model of fortress conservation for good."
Survival International said indigenous peoples know how best to manage their land and the idea outsiders know better is racist and colonial.
