Listeners to Donald Trump’s Monday interview with Elon Musk on X sent the Internet into overdrive after some noticed that the former president appeared to be speaking with a slight lisp.
It was not clear whether Trump was misspeaking or whether there was an issue with the audio quality after the conversation on X began with several technical glitches.
Many on both the right and left created memes mocking the former president’s voice, with one supporter using Photoshop to turn Trump into Mike Tyson.
“Iron Trump is giving a great interview. Lisp and all,” said one supporter, referencing the nickname of the boxing champion and “Hangover” star.
Others compared him to two of the most famous lispers in cartoon history: Daffy Duck and Sylvester the Cat.
Listeners to Donald Trump’s Monday interview with Elon Musk on X had the internet going crazy after some noticed the former president seemed to speak with a slight lisp. One meme from a Trump supporter photoshopped him to look like Mike Tyson
Others compared him to two of the most famous lispers in cartoon history: Daffy Duck and Sylvester the Cat.
“Trump’s low-key tone sounds like a cartoon on this Twitter space. His microphone makes a crazy lisp,” wrote one listener.
Another wondered: “Trump sounded like he was slurring his words a bit. Did he get any dental work done? Elon sounds like his usual self.”
However, left-wing streamer Hasan Piker defended Trump, claiming that this was how X Spaces’ audio quality always made people sound.
It’s probably due to audio compression issues, but Trump sounds like he has a lisp.
Michael Tracey, a journalist, also said he had experienced similar problems with the service.
‘Trump doesn’t slur his words, I’ve also had this weird thing happen to me on Spaces where he sounds like he has a comically outrageous lisp.’
However, former CNN journalist Chris Cillizza wondered how Trump would react to the flood of memes posted online about the alleged lisp.
“Trump’s lisp is very pronounced. That’s probably the only thing he cares about when reading the coverage of this interview,” she wrote.
Many, both on the right and the left, created memes to mock the former president’s voice.
The left-leaning Huffington Post’s White House correspondent SV Date asked the Trump campaign why the former president seemed to slur his words.
“It must be your damn hearing. Get your ears checked,” a spokesman responded.
Musk’s interview with former President Donald Trump finally began about 40 minutes later than scheduled.
He said his conversation with former President Donald Trump would take place with a smaller audience and that he would release an audio recording directly after a technological glitch derailed Monday night’s programming.
Musk said his website, X, was the victim of a cyberattack, which is why Trump’s interview failed to load.
“We tested the system with 8 million simultaneous listeners today,” insisted the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla.
X users were greeted with loud music as they attempted to enter Donald J. Trump’s “Space” to hear the former president chat with X owner Elon Musk.
Finally the music stopped and a agitated sound could be heard.
Musk’s interview with former President Donald Trump finally began about 40 minutes later than planned
Trump then seemed to have silenced his speech.
The long-awaited interview was due to start at 8pm.
Musk endorsed Trump immediately after the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The SpaceX and Tesla CEO then explained that the Q&A would be a conversation, not a hostile interview.
“It’s hard to get a vibe from someone if you don’t hear them speak normally,” Musk said.
The technological issues that plagued Trump’s interview Monday night were reminiscent of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis trying to launch his 2024 presidential campaign on the social media platform.
In May 2023, DeSantis announced he would run for president through X, but the site crashed.
At that point, Trump trolled his rival.
“Wow! DeSanctus’ Twitter launch is a DISASTER! His entire campaign is going to be a mess. LOOK AT HIM!” Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time.
DeSantis only made it through the Iowa primary, finishing a distant second behind Trump.
He tried to gain traction in Nikki Haley’s home state of South Carolina but ended up dropping out before the country’s first primary in New Hampshire, endorsing Trump on his way out.