Mayor swears at reporter in heated clash over Trump dinner claims

The Gold Coast mayor, Tom Tate, had a heated exchange with a reporter at a press conference. The mayor was questioned about his claim to have had dinner with US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump in February at Mar-a-Lago. According to ABC News AU, the White House said the president and first lady did not have dinner with the group Tate claimed to have been with.

When asked to elaborate on the dinner, Tate said he had already answered and that the matter was private. He was also read a statement from The Trump Organization, which denied his account of the event, calling it a "complete fabrication". Tate responded that he was only telling what he believed to be correct.

The press conference was cut short when Tate told a reporter to "f— off" after being asked another question. The incident occurred after the reporter asked about the bill for the meeting, and Tate had previously declined to answer questions about the cost of the meal, citing its private nature.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Sydney Morning Herald, ABC News AU — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.