Trump Calls Newsom's Dyslexia Disqualifying

The Man Who Can't Read From a Teleprompter Has Concerns About Dyslexia

President Donald Trump has a new talking point, and he is committing to it with the kind of fervor usually reserved for grievances about crowd sizes and election returns. Over the course of a single week in March 2026, Trump told anyone within earshot, at least four separate times, that California Governor Gavin Newsom is unfit for the presidency because he has dyslexia.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump called Newsom a "low-IQ person" and said, "Honestly, I'm all for people with learning disabilities, but not for my president." He then paused to acknowledge the self-awareness his own statement required: "I know it's highly controversial to say such a horrible thing." Reader, he said it anyway. Four times.

Newsom has been open about his dyslexia for years, including in his memoir "Young Man in a Hurry," released February 24, 2026. The condition, which affects how the brain processes written language, affects as many as one in five Americans and, according to the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity, has no connection to a person's overall intelligence. Trump's own medical community did not appear to receive that memo.

This is not Trump's first collision with this particular subject. In November 2015, during a campaign rally in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Trump physically imitated New York Times reporter Serge Kovaleski, who has arthrogryposis, a congenital condition that limits movement in his right arm and hand. Trump insisted he had no memory of ever meeting Kovaleski and claimed he was merely mimicking a "flustered reporter." Kovaleski countered that the two had met face-to-face on a dozen occasions, including interviews and press conferences spanning years of coverage. The explanation did not hold, but the criticism did.

The National Center for Learning Disabilities told the BBC it was "disturbed by and strongly condemns" Trump's remarks about Newsom. Jackie Rodriguez, the organization's chief executive, noted that dyslexia does not impair a person's intelligence, judgment, or ability to lead, and that people with learning disabilities have risen to the upper echelon of every public office in the United States, including former presidents. Researchers have suggested that George Washington, John F. Kennedy, and Woodrow Wilson may have had dyslexia. Nobody seemed to disqualify them at the door.

Newsom, for his part, has never tried to hide any of this. At an event in Atlanta last month, he told the audience, "You've never seen me read a speech, because I cannot read a speech." He described his diagnosis as formative and said in a February 2026 CNN interview with Dana Bash that dyslexia had become, in his words, "the greatest thing in hindsight to happen to me," because it forced him to work harder and think faster than his peers. Trump took that transparency and turned it into a campaign prop.

The whole exchange took a surreal turn when Trump, mid-rant, accidentally referred to Newsom as "the President of the United States." Newsom posted on X immediately: "NO THANK YOU, WE BELIEVE IN FREE ELECTIONS!" His press office had already responded to an earlier round of Trump's comments by suggesting that "Grandpa's talking about himself again" and encouraging the president to "seek mental treatment." Newsom himself posted a sharper version, calling Trump "a brain-dead moron." The civility bar continues its descent.

Trump has frequently struggled reading a teleprompter and has repeatedly insisted he aced a cognitive test amid ongoing public questions about his acuity at 79. That context did not stop him. White House spokesperson Davis Ingle defended Trump's remarks, saying Newsom "is the worst governor in America, and he also may be the dumbest." Official government communications, ladies and gentlemen.

Newsom responded to Trump's most recent comments with a message directed at children: "To every kid with a learning disability: don't let anyone, not even the President of the United States, bully you. Dyslexia isn't a weakness. It's your strength."

Trump picked dyslexia as his line of attack against the man widely expected to challenge his party in 2028, possibly making forty-three million Americans with the same diagnosis a reason to ally with Newsom.

@Santitos

@salinasmariasantos

Copyright © 2026 Maria Santos Salinas for FRONTeras.

All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Sharing the original posts or links from FRONTeras on social media is allowed and appreciated.

FRONTeras is an independent publication protected by the First Amendment's guarantees of freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Our reporting and commentary draw from documented facts, public records, court filings, and reliable news sources. Opinions expressed in editorials are solely those of the author and do not constitute legal advice, divine truth, or the official position of FRONTeras. All articles, whether news, satirical, or commentary, are produced according to journalistic standards of accuracy, fairness, and independence. While errors in reporting are possible, they will be corrected promptly once verified with credible sources. Critiques are grounded in evidence, not malice. Attempts to censor, intimidate, or punish the press will not alter the facts we publish. FRONTeras will continue to report without fear or favor.