Washington: President Donald Trump has made no secret of his contempt for reporters, whom he calls "fake news" and "enemy of the American people." He's also had unkind things to say about women and people who are African-American.

This week, he hit a trifecta, singling out three African-American women who are journalists. The women – Abby Phillip, April Ryan and Yamiche Alcindor – earned his contempt apparently just for asking him questions.

Trump called one of Phillip's questions "stupid," described Ryan as "a loser" and brushed off Alcindor, saying her question was "racist."

CNN journalist Abby Phillip asks President Donald Trump a question before he departed for France. Credit:AP

Phillip, a CNN reporter and former Washington Post journalist, drew Trump's wrath on Friday, after she asked whether he hoped Matthew Whitaker, Trump's appointee as acting attorney general, would "rein in" special counsel Robert Mueller's probe of Trump's presidential campaign.