In a recent interview with ABC News on the first 100 days of his presidency, Donald Trump quickly turned confrontational.
President Trump insisted in a television interview that the man his administration mistakenly sent to a Salvadoran prison has the letters and numbers “MS-13” tattooed on his knuckles.
— The Wall Street Journal (@wsj.com) 2025-04-30T14:45:24.011Z
The tone escalated when Trump lashed out at ABC News reporter Terry Moran, who claimed that the letters « M », « S », « 1 » and « 3 » had been Photoshopped onto the hand of Kilmar Ábrego García, a man mistakenly deported to a prison in El Salvador, and whom the Trump administration accuses, without proof, of belonging to the MS-13 gang.
Moran pointed out that the letters and numbers had been « photoshopped » onto the image recently published by Trump on his Truth Social network, where the president is seen, from the Oval Office, holding a sheet on which is printed the photo of Kilmar Ábrego García’s hand.
The fingers of the hand in the photo feature several tattoos: a marijuana leaf, a smiley face, a cross and a skull. However, the photo in question has clearly been digitally altered: letters and numbers have been added above each image – an « M », an « S », a « 1 » and a « 3 » – forming the acronym « MS-13 ».
After pointing out that the letters « M », « S », « 1 » and « 3 » had obviously been added digitally to the image, the ABC News reporter was visibly annoyed that the President didn’t grasp this digital manipulation.
Moran, however, didn’t dispute that the tattoo « could be interpreted that way », pointing out that he didn’t consider himself an expert on the subject.
These remarks triggered a sharp reaction from the president, who immediately retorted: « No, Terry, no, no, he has M-S… as clear as you can be, not interpreted ».
During this tense exchange, the president went on to hurl insults at the journalist, claiming that this interview represented « the big break of a lifetime » for him.
He then accused the media of fueling public distrust, concluding, « This is why the people no longer believes the news » .
« Why don’t you just say, yes he does (has the MS13 tattoed) and go on to something else », Trump then launched, in a fit of rage.