Although Americans are used to former President Donald Trump's criticisms of his opponents in general, and current President Joe Biden in particular, a video that went viral last Saturday has sparked widespread outrage. Many viewers interpreted this clip, which has garnered millions of views, as blatant bullying and mockery of those who stutter, especially children.
During a campaign rally in Rome, Georgia, last Saturday evening, Trump mocked his fierce rival and competitor in the presidential election in a manner described as humiliating. The potential Republican presidential candidate imitated Biden’s speech pattern, stating with a clear and crude stutter: “S-s-s-s I will unite the country!”
However, Trump's mockery has triggered a wave of anger on social media, particularly on X (formerly Twitter), where Trump's opponents fiercely criticized him. Some compared him to Biden and shared a video of the current president from 2020, where he comforted a child, Braden Harrington, who struggles with stuttering.
T. Kinney Fountain, an associate professor at the University of Virginia who studies political discourse and experienced stuttering as a child, said, “Trump used and continues to use Biden’s disability as a weapon to support his views on Biden’s competence, yet he violated all social norms with this behavior to rally supporters and excite his voters.”
