President Donald Trump triggered another wave of controversy Friday after viral video clips captured him performing exaggerated "grunts and groans" while mocking transgender athletes during a rally-style speech in New York, a performance critics condemned as demeaning while supporters cheered the remarks inside the venue.
The incident unfolded during a "Fighting For American Workers" event at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York, where Trump had been expected to focus primarily on economic issues ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Instead, the speech veered into familiar campaign territory involving transgender athletes, crime, voter identification and attacks on Democrats.
Video of the moment spread rapidly across social media after journalist Aaron Rupar posted clips to X showing Trump launching into one of his now-frequent routines comparing cisgender female athletes to transgender competitors.
The president again acted out a fictional female weightlifter struggling to raise a barbell before shifting into a dramatized imitation of a transgender athlete lifting the same weight effortlessly. The performance included exaggerated sounds, heavy breathing and grunting noises that quickly became the focus of online debate.
The rally briefly descended into disruption when a protester interrupted Trump during the anti-trans section of the speech. According to reports cited by Raw Story, Trump responded as security removed the demonstrator by saying: "Go home to mom. Go home to mom. Take him home to mommy."
"Don't hurt him, don't hurt him. I do that for legal reasons," Trump added.
The weightlifter impression has become one of the president's most repeated stage routines since first appearing publicly during a 2022 speech hosted by the America First Policy Institute. Trump has since repeated variations of the act at campaign rallies, commencement speeches and Republican events throughout his return to national office.
At a January 2026 address at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Trump joked: "I want to be more, but I have somebody watching. I want to be more effusive," before again launching into the impression.
He made similar remarks during a May 2025 commencement speech at the University of Alabama, telling students: "My wife gets very upset when I do this. She says, Darling, it's not presidential."
"All right, I'm in trouble when I get home," Trump continued. "but that's OK, what the hell. I've been in lots of trouble before."
The White House itself has amplified portions of the routine online. The administration's Rapid Response 47 social media account previously posted a clip of Trump's Kennedy Center remarks with the caption: "@POTUS on his imitation of trans athletes in women's sports: My wife HATES when I do this."
The renewed backlash arrives amid broader criticism of the administration's policies toward LGBTQ Americans. According to the GLAAD Trump Accountability Tracker, the administration has issued hundreds of statements or policy actions affecting LGBTQ communities since Trump returned to office in January 2025.
Among the administration's most controversial measures:
- Restrictions on transgender military service
- Federal recognition of only two sexes under executive order
- Limits on X gender markers for U.S. passports
- Policies affecting gender identity protections across federal agencies
Critics argue Trump's rhetoric at rallies mirrors the policy direction of his administration. Advocacy groups say the repeated performances normalize public ridicule of transgender Americans while reinforcing legal restrictions enacted at the federal level.
