Who is SV Dáte? Karoline Leavitt slams Huffington reporter over Trump questions

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has stirred up controversy by calling out HuffPost journalist SV Dáte for what she termed “one-sided” and “disingenuous” questions about President Donald Trump's upcoming meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest.

This is not the first occasion that SV Dáte has locked horns with Trump or his allies. A longtime political journalist, Dáte has been covering US politics for more than 30 years.

He is currently the Senior White House Correspondent for HuffPost and has worked for other major outlets, including the Associated Press, NPR, The Palm Beach Post, and National Journal.

NEW -- Karoline Leavitt keeps insulting HuffPost, but does not want to answer what seems like a pretty simple question: Who picked Budapest as the next meeting site between Trump and his 2016 benefactor/murderous war criminal Vladimir Putin?https://t.co/3N1QiCok0k

— S.V. Dáte (@svdate) October 20, 2025

Dáte holds a degree in political science from Stanford University, and he's the author of several books, including The Useful Idiot, in which he critiques Trump's management of the COVID-19 pandemic and impact on the Republican Party.

In his writings, Dáte often discusses themes of democratic institutions, accountability, and threats of authoritarianism in contemporary U.S. politics.

In addition to his writing, Dáte is also an experienced sailor who has sailed over 35,000 ocean miles over a two-year period sailing across the Atlantic and Mediterranean with his two sons.

SV Dáte's recent exchange with Karoline Leavitt

Dáte supposedly initiated the conversation by texting Leavitt to inquire if the President was “aware of the significance of Budapest” as the proposed location for peace talks, referring to the 1994 Budapest Memorandum in which Ukraine surrendered its nuclear weapons in exchange for Russia's commitment not to threaten Ukraine or use force or coercion.

Dáte also asked who had recommended the location, as he thought the location was possibly controversial to Ukraine.

Leavitt replied sarcastically saying, “Your mom did,” then followed up with a firmly-worded message accusing Dáte of being a “far-left hack” and taking issue with his previous journalism. Later, the press secretary posted a screenshot of the entire exchange on X by claiming Dáte often confronted her with “politically slanted” questions.

"Just take a look at @svdate’s feed, it reads like an anti-Trump personal diary. Here is my full response to his “inquiry.” Activists who masquerade as real reporters do a disservice to the profession," Karoline Leavitt wrote on X.

For context, S.V. Dáte of the Huffington Post is not a journalist interested in the facts. He is a left-wing hack who has consistently attacked President Trump for years and constantly bombards my phone with Democrat talking points.

Just take a look at @svdate’s feed, it reads… https://t.co/NxWn2mdUsa pic.twitter.com/v7owI5N4us

— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) October 20, 2025

SV Dáte commented back to Leavitt publicly on X, saying:

"Feel better now? Now can you answer the question? Please and thank you."

This recent incident certainly reflects the current tension between the Trump administration and portions of the press, but more than that, it exposes the polarization within media and political discourse in the United States.