Transgender activist and social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney delivered a sharp retort to President Trump on Sunday, days after the president mocked her during the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. In a video posted to Instagram, Mulvaney dismissed the attack as a backhanded compliment, claiming her presence in Trump’s rhetoric proves she has become an indelible figure in conservative political discourse.
“Now, the president also brought up a video I did over three years ago, and mind you, I’ve been kind of flying under the radar, keeping up a pretty low profile, just like doing my little musicals, singing, dancing,” Mulvaney said. “And yet, I am still his topic of conversation all these years later.”
She continued: “It seems to me that I might be like the one that got away for these men. Like, I am permanently burned into their retinas. I am microchipped into their minds.”
Trump’s remarks came during the annual dinner on Friday, where he praised CNN chief White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins after she received an award for covering his administration. The president, who has a long history of sparring with Collins, noted that she “never smiles” and then pivoted to a joke about Mulvaney’s 2023 Bud Light promotion.
“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. “Dylan Mulvaney cost Bud Light $35 billion in market cap. That was the worst commercial ever made, by the way...” The line drew an awkward silence from the audience.
The controversy stems from a 2023 Instagram ad where Mulvaney posed with a personalized Bud Light can. The campaign sparked a conservative backlash and calls for a boycott of the Anheuser-Busch brand, which Mulvaney later accused of failing to support her amid the firestorm. That episode has since become a flashpoint in the culture wars, with Trump frequently referencing it on the campaign trail and in office.
Mulvaney, however, struck a defiant tone in her response. She said she was “incredibly honored to be compared” to Collins and praised the journalist’s work. But she also noted that the sting of Trump’s mockery was lessened by a personal slight: being ghosted by a recent romantic interest. “What I realized from that experience was that I shouldn’t want to be with someone who doesn’t really want to be with me,” she said. “So maybe I shouldn’t want to be professionally supported by an administration that doesn’t personally support me or so many others in this country.”
She added: “Maybe 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.”
The exchange underscores the ongoing cultural and political battles over LGBTQ rights, with Trump repeatedly using Mulvaney as a symbol in his broader critique of corporate diversity initiatives. Trump’s 2025 aid cuts have also drawn criticism from advocacy groups, who warn that such policies could undermine decades of progress on HIV prevention and treatment.
Mulvaney’s response also comes as Senate Republicans navigate internal divisions over Trump’s legislative priorities, including demands to scrap the August recess for an election bill. Meanwhile, Trump has been pausing military strikes on Iran and focusing on domestic politics, with a trip to Michigan to rally support ahead of key primaries.
