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See the full story · 2 sourcesMulvaney said the president invoking her name reminded her she is ‘more powerful’ than she ever knew
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Dylan Mulvaney, the transgender influencer, activist and actress, responded to President Donald Trump’s attack against her and CNN’s Kaitlan Collin s from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner , calling it a “compliment.”
Mulvaney, 29, posted a TikTok Sunday saying she was “incredibly honored” to be compared to Collins and that being criticized by the administration puts her in the company of “some of the most brilliant, empathetic people in our world today.”
“To the president, thank you for reminding me that I am more powerful than I even knew and to quote my favorite recording artist, Shea Diamond, ‘I am America,’” Mulvaney said in her video.
At the dinner, Trump used Mulvaney’s 2023 Bud Light partnership – which caused outrage among conservatives and led to protests against the company – to mock the trans influencer and also insult Collins for not smiling.
“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. And Dylan Mulvaney cost Bud Light $35 billion in market cap,” Trump said during his speech.
Mulvaney, who gained online fame by documenting her transition, partnered with Bud Light for a social media promotion video in April 2023. But rather than attract younger audiences, the video led to an intense boycott from anti-transgender conservatives.
Trump added: “I would not want to hire Dylan anytime soon.”
Mulvaney hypothesized that the administration is still mocking her three years after her partnership with Bud Light because, “I am free in a way that they will never have the privilege to experience and they want to use their power to take away my freedom.”
“But what they don’t understand is that my freedom has like zero contingency on what they can provide for me because my freedom is fully dependent on the moment that I acknowledged my real authentic self and every day since,” Mulvaney said.
Mulvaney went on to encourage people to stand up for, support and love trans and nonbinary people as well as support businesses that hire trans and nonbinary people.
The president’s comparison of Mulvaney and Collins appeared to be his way of insulting Collins, who won a White House Correspondents’ Association award for her coverage of Trump’s infamous meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“She never smiles,” Trump said of Collins, an insult he’s levied against the CNN anchor previously.
“I said, ‘Kaitlin, do you ever smile?’ Smile. You have a nice position. You’re at CNN fake news. You should be a happy person. So smile, Kaitlan. Just smile,” Trump added.
The president went on to call her award a “fake award” that he really deserved.
After the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Trump took his jab further by posting an AI-generated image of Collins’s face over Mulvaney's in her Bud Light commercial.
In her response, Mulvaney said it was an honor to be compared to Collins and congratulated her on the award.
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