The president called Acosta a "rude, terrible person" during the exchange, and Hollywood took to Twitter in the reporter's defense.
Political debate clearly isn't going anywhere after Tuesday's midterm elections.
During a press conference on Wednesday, President Donald Trump called CNN's Jim Acosta a "rude, terrible person" after the reporter tried to ask several questions, but was cut off or dismissed by the commander in chief.
The president further went off on Acosta as he tried to ask another question off-mic, saying, "When you report fake news, which CNN does a lot, you are the enemy of the people."
Hours after the verbal sparring, Acosta took to Twitter to reveal that his White House access had been revoked.
"I’ve just been denied entrance to the WH. Secret Service just informed me I cannot enter the WH grounds for my 8pm hit," the veteran news reporter wrote.
Soon after, he shared a video of a Secret Service agent confiscating his White House press credentials. "The US Secret Service just asked for my credential to enter the WH. As I told the officer, I don’t blame him. I know he’s just doing his job," Acosta wrote."
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders released a statement, attempting to justify the decision.
"President Trump believes in a free press and expects and welcomes tough questions of him and his Administration. We will, however, never tolerate a reporter placing his hands on a young woman just trying to do her job as a White House intern," Sanders' statement read, in part, referring to an intern who attempted to remove Acosta's mic from his hand during his argument with Trump, to which the reporter respectfully resisted.
Acosta shared a terse rebuttal to Sanders' claim, tweeting, "This is a lie."
Trump's actions during the tense press conference did not sit well with Twitter or Hollywood, who had some thoughts about the president's harsh words.
"The president is a f--king embarrassment," John Legend wrote on Twitter.
Sarah Silverman, host of I Love You, America, also went off. "Why doesn’t CNN and all journalists who check and verify everything they report sue trump for slander? He lies about them on the daily and is never held accountable," she wrote.
Meghan McCain was also distraught at the discourse on display, posting, "I got 4 hours of sleep last night and can't emotionally deal with Trump's presser right now."
McCain's fellow View co-host, Sunny Hostin, came to Acosta's defense.
"I worked with Jim @Acosta at CNN. He is a consummate professional and journalist. Shameful how he was treated today by the person sworn to protect the 1st Amendment," she wrote.
Meanwhile, other politically active stars vowed to keep working post-election. "As long as @realdonaldtrump is our President, I’m not taking a day off. Too much to do," wrote Alyssa Milano, who has campaigned for Democratic candidates and famously attended the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
See what else Hollywood and other journalists had to say about the moment below.
CNN responded to the incident in a statement on Twitter, writing, "This President's ongoing attacks on the press have gone too far. They are not only dangerous, they are disturbingly un-American."
For more on how stars have been politically active, watch the clip below!
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