Former U.S. President Donald Trump found himself in a peculiar moment during a Fox News interview with Sean Hannity, as he emphatically denied being “weird” after the term was used by political opponents to describe him and his running mate, Senator JD Vance.
The label was initially coined by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who is running as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate in the 2024 election. Over the summer, Walz used the term to characterise Trump and Vance, and the description quickly caught on with others. It appears to have struck a nerve with Trump, who lashed out at Walz during Tuesday’s interview.
“There’s something weird with that guy,” Trump said of Walz. “He’s a weird guy. JD is not weird. He’s a solid rock. I happen to be a very solid rock. We’re not weird. We’re other things, perhaps, but we’re not weird.”
Though he did not clarify what those “other things” might be, Trump continued to criticise Walz, returning to the “weird” theme several times throughout the conversation.
“But he is a weird guy. He walks on the stage, there’s something wrong with that guy, and he called me ‘weird,’” Trump said. “And then the fake news media picked it up, that was the word of the day: Weird, weird, weird. But we’re not weird guys. We’re very solid people who want our country to be great again.”
Trump’s repeated use of the word “weird” – a total of 11 times in just 30 seconds – highlighted how much the remark has affected him. The former president has now addressed the term on multiple occasions, bringing it up unprompted at rallies and interviews.
Governor Walz, on the other hand, has remained steadfast in his description of Trump and Vance, explaining that he uses “weird” as a way to neutralise the fear factor often associated with far-right politics.
“The fascists depend on fear,” Walz said in July. “But we’re not afraid of weird people. We’re a little bit creeped out, but we’re not afraid.”
Trump’s latest attempt to dispel the “weird” label has only drawn more attention to the remark, adding another layer of intrigue to his already unconventional political persona as the 2024 election race heats up.
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