Donald Trump not only insulted California Governor Gavin Newsom, but he also completely disqualified him as being eligible to run for president due to Newsom’s dyslexia.
Newsom has regularly touted overcoming dyslexia as a strength for him, even playing victim when attacked by Trump or other Republicans.
Trump is now trying to flip the script, and he has set the internet on fire in the process.
Trump is walking a really fine line by going after Newsom on this front, but he is clearly seeing him as the primary threat in the upcoming 2028 primary race.
The New York Times reports that Trump, on Newsom, stated, “Honestly, I’m all for people with learning disabilities, but not for my president. The president should not have learning disabilities, okay?
“I know it’s highly controversial to say such a horrible thing. The president of the United States, Gavin Newscum, admitted he has learning disabilities, dyslexia, everything about him is dumb.”
Trump had also posted to Truth Social that Newsom had “said, in a speech, he was dumb, had low Boards, can’t read, has dyslexia, and has a mental disorder — A Cognitive Mess!”
Trump has to know he is going to take heat over this, but he likely figures it is worth the risk since he is not the actual individual who will be running for office. Trump is also taking heat for mistakenly referring to Newsom as “president of the United States” during the Oval Office presser.
Newsom’s initial response to Trump’s mistake in his title, posting to X, “NO THANK YOU, WE BELIEVE IN FAIR ELECTIONS!”
Concerning Trump’s Truth Social post, Newsom fired back, “I spoke about my dyslexia. I know that’s hard for a brain-dead moron who bombs children and protects pedophiles to understand.”
Newsom’s wife, Jennifer, also hit Trump on the comment, in part, stating, “I just witnessed Donald Trump's comments about learning disabilities and my husband, Gavin Newsom, and I honestly had to take a beat. Suggesting that someone with dyslexia or any learning difference for that matter is somehow less capable of leading or achieving is extremely ignorant and offensive.”
Her post went on in length to defend her husband, as well as others with disabilities, eventually concluding that comments like this from Trump are “beyond disqualifying.” (To see her full post, click here.)
Per the Cleveland Clinic, dyslexia is defined as: Dyslexia is a learning disability that disrupts how your brain processes written language. It’s lifelong but manageable with the right support. Early diagnosis, specialized teaching and assistive tools can help children and adults improve skills and build confidence.
Some of the common challenges with dyslexia are remembering specific orders, such as what letter comes next in the alphabet, reading slower, mixing up letters, such as “tar” for “rat,” and confusing directions.
The condition is treatable, and those who have it, if caught early enough, can function normally. For instance, in Newsom’s case, he generally does not have a written speech, but instead fires from the hip when speaking publicly.
This was a calculated risk by Trump, and one he clearly thought was worth taking hits for. Again, he is not going to be the one running for office, so he can take the heat. This sounds more like Trump just wanted to make people aware that you may not want someone with the nuke codes not actually being able to understand them. Was it a smart move? Well, I guess we will find out during the Democrat primary race.
