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NOT ON MY WATCH

Trump Goon’s Security Scrambles to Shut Down Embarrassing Questions

The Cabinet official couldn’t be bothered to respond to a reporter’s questions about his boss.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s security guard got physical with a reporter to save his boss from answering questions about the president.

TMZ DC’s Charlie Cotton approached the top Trump official at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to ask about President Donald Trump’s post-midterms strategy, but was stonewalled both verbally and physically.

“I’m with TMZ—can I just ask you one question, sir?” Cotton asked Burgum in a video shared by the outlet on Monday.

The Cabinet secretary, 70, ignored the reporter while staring down at his phone.

doug burgum tmz dc charlie cotton

Burgum was not happy about being approached by the TMZ reporter.

Screenshot/TMZ

“Please, sir, just one question. It’s not a gotcha question, I promise,” Cotton said, prompting a scoff from Burgum, who began walking away.

As Cotton began his question about Trump, the government official’s security guard interrupted him and physically separated him from Burgum.

“Hey, you’re not allowed to—please don’t touch me, sir,” the TMZ reporter said to the bodyguard, who stepped in front of Cotton’s camera. “You’re banging into me. Sir! Can you please not do that?”

tmz dc charlie cotton doug burgum

Burgum's bodyguard got in the reporter's face.

Screenshot/TMZ

The man, carrying a small blue briefcase, kept weaving in front of the journalist as he tried to ask Burgum his question.

“Doug, I’ve just got a simple question,” Cotton said once more as the entourage stepped outside toward a car in the airport pickup lane. “Usually, a president in Trump’s position, being a lame duck, would be ineffective. Do you think that’s gonna be true of President Trump?”

The bodyguard stepped into Cotton’s personal space again, urging a back-and-forth between the two.

US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum delivers remarks next to US President Donald Trump ahead of the midterm elections at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, after being reopened following months of repairs, on the National Mall in Washington, DC, US, November 2, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Burgum has been Trump's right-hand man for all of the president's White House vanity projects.

Jonathan Ernst/REUTERS

“Sir, you’ve been touching me far too many times, sir,” the reporter told the security guard, who replied, “You’ve been touching me!”

“I’m not impeding his post; I’m not a threat at all, sir! You can’t touch me like that!” Cotton exclaimed. “That’s unbelievable.”

Burgum kept mum the entire time, refusing to acknowledge the reporter as another staffer packed his belongings into the back of the black luxury SUV.

tmz dc doug burgum charlie cotton

The bodyguard opened the door for Burgum’s escape.

Screenshot/TMZ

“I see how you pick on the little guy. Ain’t that something?” a bystander said off-camera as the bodyguard opened the car door for Burgum to enter.

An Interior Department spokesperson told the Daily Beast: “Secretary Burgum’s security detail takes their mission seriously and conducts themselves professionally 24/7, 365. Full stop. The video clearly shows the detail’s actions followed protocol. We thank his security detail for their service and dedication every single day.”

Trump, 80, is gearing up for a lame-duck presidency in his final two years in office after Democrats pulled a resounding victory in the midterms last week, securing both House and Senate majorities.

In the wake of the historic rebuke of his administration, Trump has already replaced his veteran adviser, Susie Wiles, as chief of staff with Stephen Miller—arguably his most controversial aide.

President Donald Trump, with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, speaks during an event to sign executive orders related to birthright citizenship and the polysilicon industry, in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, on August 6, 2026

Miller has stepped up as the president's new chief of staff following the GOP's staggering defeat in last week's midterm elections.

Evelyn Hockstein/REUTERS

Monday marks the first day for Miller, the architect of the administration’s hardline immigration enforcement agenda, leading the second half of Trump 2.0.

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