'You're such a smart-a--': Kellyanne Conway unloads on CNN's Jim Acosta in fiery exchange, after he asks if Trump 'will tell the truth'

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White House counselor Kellyanne Conway.

• White House counselor Kellyanne Conway and CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta got into a heated exchange, hours before President Donald Trump is expected to deliver his first primetime address.
• Acosta asked Conway if she believed Trump "will tell the truth" during his Tuesday night address to the nation.
• Conway accused Acosta of seeking attention and described him as a "smart-ass."

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway and CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta got into a heated exchange at the White House on Tuesday, hours before President Donald Trump was scheduled to deliver his first primetime address to the nation.

"Can you promise that the president will tell the truth tonight, will he tell the truth," Acosta asked Conway, outside the White House grounds with a group of other reporters.

"Yes Jim, and can you promise that you will," Conway asked.

Acosta offered a rebuttal when Conway interrupted: "And let me get back in your face because you're such a smart-ass most of the time," Conway said, "and I know you want this to go viral, a lot of these people don't like you."

Read more: 'PRESIDENTIAL FAKE NEWS': CNN's Jim Acosta rails against Trump's hostility toward the press

Acosta and Trump's various advisers, press secretaries, and counselors, have a well-documented history of incendiary interactions. The CNN correspondent routinely challenges the administration, and has attracted both praise and condemnation in the process.

Acosta's relationship with the White House hit a low point in November when it suspended his press pass after a particularly heated one-on-one exchange with Trump during a press conference.

CNN filed a lawsuit in response, alleging its First Amendment rights were violated, and the White House reinstated Acosta's hard pass.

Trump is scheduled to deliver his first primetime address at 9:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, amid the ongoing partial government shutdown that is now on its 18th day. The president is expected to discuss the ongoing developments on the US-Mexico border, which he described as a "crisis."

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