Trump: ‘My wife hates when I do this’

Donald Trump revealed to a group of Republican lawmakers what his wife hates most about his speeches and it’s not what comes out of his mouth. First Lady Melania Trump pleaded that the president stop imitating weight-lifting during his bit on transgender athletes because ‘it’s not presidential.’ She also thinks he shouldn’t dance on stage in what has become a popular spectacle, Trump said at the GOP retreat at the Trump-Kennedy Center in Washington, DCon Tuesday.Trump told Melania that his fans ‘really like’ his dancing, which is usually performed at the conclusion of his remarks to the hit Village People song Y.M.C.A., but that she replied: ‘They don’t like it, they’re just being nice to you.’

‘That’s not right, the place goes crazy,’ Trump said of his wife’s criticism of his arm-pumping dance. And it’s true that both his weight-lifting imitation and dancing are viewed as popular among his loyal base. During his wandering speech on Tuesday, Trump repeated his claim that Democrats are wrong to allow biological men to compete in women’s sports. But as the president began to mime lifting a barbell above his head, Trump interrupted himself to divulge how the first lady feels about it.

‘My wife hates when I do this,’ Trump admitted. ‘She’s a very classy person, right? She said, ‘It’s so unpresidential.’ I said, ‘But I did become president.’ ‘She said, ‘Darling please, the weight-lifting is terrible.’ The revelation caused an uproar among Republican lawmakers gathered for their annual retreat on the five-year anniversary of the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot. More audience feedback ensued when Trump defied his wife’s request and went on with physically mocking how the female athlete was unable to complete the lift while the transgender competitor easily lifted even more weight and broke the world record.

At first he gave a miniature version of his imitation, but then said, ‘I want to be more effusive,’ and gave it another go. This time the president stuck out his tongue, breathed heavily and acted fatigued with his arms beside his chest to make it look like he was holding a barbell before pretending to drop it on the ground. Republicans went wild. The speech was meant to embolden Republicans ahead of a tough midterm election season where, if history repeats itself, could see the party losing its majority in at least one, if not both chambers of Congress.

‘I just want to say this,’ the president said during the conclusion of his lengthy speech where he admittedly went completely off-script. ‘I think I gave you something it’s just a roadmap. And it’s a roadmap to victory. You have so many good nuggets you have to use them. If you can sell them, we’re going to win.’ Trump said that he wants to keep the transgender athlete talk on the down low during the 2026 midterm campaign because he doesn’t want to give Democrats the chance to flip their stance. ‘I want to start bringing up about a week before the election, because I don’t want them to correct themselves,’ the president advised, insisting: ‘That’d be a devastating blow for us.’

Trump went on at a few points in his speech to discuss sports, claiming: ‘I’m a big sports person. I love sports!’ He called out Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan for being ‘all-American’ in wrestling at Ohio State University. But the president seemed more concerned with the lawmaker’s potential ‘plastic survey’ procedures, saying that his ‘cauliflower ear,’ which is a common ear disfiguration condition for wrestlers, has looked better over the years.

He also discussed golf, his favorite pastime. ‘I play speed golf. It’s better that way,’ Trump insisted. ‘You know the expression, ‘Miss it quick’? No, I play speed golf.’ He then contradicted the self deprecating statement, claiming: ‘But I’m a good golfer. Everybody that I’ve beaten in this group I love golf.’ ‘But I don’t get to play much,’ he lamented, despite spending almost every weekend at one of his golf courses.