Dylan Mulvaney fires back after Trump's WHCD mockery
Dylan Mulvaney fires back at President Donald Trump after he mocked the trans advocate and CNN's Kaitlan Collins in his White House Correspondents' Dinner speech Friday. In a Sunday TikTok, she said being publicly mocked by the administration is "actually, like, the greatest compliment of all."
Key Takeaways
- Trump mocked Mulvaney and Collins during Friday's rescheduled White House Correspondents' Dinner speech.
- He referenced the 2023 Bud Light controversy and claimed the campaign cost Bud Light $35 billion in market cap.
- Mulvaney responded Sunday on TikTok, congratulating Collins and reframing the attack as a compliment.
- Trump later posted an AI-generated image linking Collins to Mulvaney's Bud Light ad.
- Mulvaney urged support for trans and nonbinary people and thanked Trump for reminding her of her power.
The exchange quickly spilled beyond the ballroom and into social video, where Mulvaney — known to entertainment audiences as a trans advocate, actress and singer who most recently starred in the Broadway musical "Six" — seized the last word. For more viral entertainment and TV-adjacent alerts, see BlasterPost's Streaming & TV Alerts hub.
What did Trump say about Dylan Mulvaney at the dinner?
According to Variety, Trump spoke after Collins accepted an award for her White House coverage. He compared the two women and brought up Mulvaney's 2023 Bud Light social media ad, which had sparked a consumer boycott.
"I thought Kaitlan had really made it big with a major new sponsorship, but then I informed her that it wasn't her on the Bud Light can, it was Dylan Mulvaney," Trump said. He added that Mulvaney "cost Bud Light $35 billion in market cap," called it "the worst commercial ever made," and said he "wouldn't want to hire Dylan any time soon."
The dinner had been postponed after a gunman opened fire at the original April event. Since Friday night, Trump doubled down by posting an AI-generated photo from the beer ad that placed Collins' face on Mulvaney's body.
How did Dylan Mulvaney respond on TikTok?
"My name is Dylan Mulvaney and the president said my name four times in his speech on Friday night," she opened in a video posted Sunday evening. She first congratulated Collins, saying she was "incredibly honored to be compared to her in any way" and hoped Collins continues "all the great work."
Mulvaney said she had been "kind of flying under the radar" since the Bud Light video, yet remains "still his topic of conversation all these years later." She suggested she might be "the one that got away for these men," permanently fixed in their minds.
She closed with a direct message to Trump: "To the president, thank you for reminding me that I am more powerful than I even knew." Quoting recording artist Shea Diamond, she added, "I am America."
Why does Mulvaney call the criticism a compliment?
Mulvaney argued that "being publicly mocked and criticized by this administration is actually, like, the greatest compliment of all because it puts me in the company of some of the most brilliant, empathetic people in our world today."
She also asked why her success matters so much to critics, answering that she has "freedom" they cannot take away — freedom she ties to acknowledging her "real, authentic self." She told viewers that sharing that story could show young people they can find success and freedom too.
Her "action items" stressed supporting trans and nonbinary people, especially young people seeking acceptance. "When they try to judge you for your support of us, take that as the greatest compliment," she said, urging allies and "the dolls" to have each other's backs.