The president recently made comments about California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his struggles with dyslexia.

Anderson Cooper rips Trump for mocking people with dyslexia: ‘For the record, I’m one of them’

The president recently made comments about California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his struggles with dyslexia.

By Marina Watts

Marina Watts

Marina Watts is a news writer for with seven years experience covering entertainment, pop culture and celebrity news. Her previous work appears in PEOPLE, Bustle and Newsweek.

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March 27, 2026 1:15 p.m. ET

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Anderson Cooper; Donald Trump. Credit:

CNN; Will Oliver/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty

- Anderson Cooper called out Donald Trump for his latest comments about dyslexia.

- The president has taken aim at California Gov. Gavin Newsom, saying, "I don't want a person with mental disability to be my president."

- Cooper, who suffered from dyslexia as a child, pointed out that people with dyslexia can and do lead successful lives.

Anderson Cooper laid into Donald Trump after his latest comments about dyslexia.

During Wednesday's *Anderson Cooper 360*, Cooper slammed the president for his comments aimed at California Gov. Gavin Newsom. The potential presidential candidate has spoken publicly about having dyslexia, and doesn't read speeches "because of how letters on a page appear to him" and gives them from memory instead.

"With so much going on with the war in Iran, President Trump still found time today to insult millions of Americans, both adults and school kids, who experienced or have faced problems reading," Cooper began. "For the record, I've one of them. I've had a mild form of dyslexia as a child."

Cooper went on to say that reading "did not come easy" for him, and he still occasionally mixes up B's and D's, along with S's and R's. "I sometimes stutter and stumble on words, as you may have noticed. I was lucky, though. A teacher noticed it in the second or third grade and I got help. A lot of kids don't. If you're wondering why the president would do this, it's because he senses political gain out of it."**

Anderson Cooper in 2023.

Cindy Ord/Getty

Trump, employing his nickname for the governor, said on Wednesday at the White House: "Gavin 'New-scum,' who is one of the candidates, I believe he took himself out of the running when he says he suffers from mental disability. And a reporter said it was terrible that I talked that way about somebody with mental disability. I said I had no problem with it, but I don't want a person with mental disability to be my president."

Cooper noted that it wasn't the first time that Trump had been "using dyslexia as a cudgel, implying it makes the governor dumb."

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Trump previously stated during a speech in Houston on March 11 that he didn't "want the president of the United States to have a cognitive deficiency." He said that as president, "you've got to be sharp as hell."

Trump also appeared on *The Brian Kilmeade Show* on March 12, calling in to double down on his previous comments. "[Newsom] admitted he had learning disabilities. Somebody said, 'Well, what's wrong with that?' I said, 'That's okay, but not for the president,'" Trump said.

The president brought up the comment about "learning disabilities" again on March 16. He said he knows it's "highly controversial to say such a horrible thing," but "everything about [Newsom] is dumb."

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Cooper continued his pointed commentary saying that "the president shows his own ignorance when he claims that people living with dyslexia are somehow dumb." "If the president actually read books or anything on the topic, he would know that," the journalist said. "He also could have asked Gary Cohn, his chief economic advisor in his first term."

Cohn's dyslexia was part of the press release announcing his appointment. "Apparently President Trump didn't bother to read that, either."

Cooper then listed a number of successful people who had dyslexia. It is likely that President Woodrow Wilson, who won the Nobel Peace Prize — an honor Trump has repeatedly expressed a desire to get — had dyslexia. "A guy with dyslexia gets it, but he had to bogart one from an actual Nobel laureate," Cooper said.**

President Donald Trump in 2026.

Will Oliver/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty

Cooper pointed out that even those without dyslexia may still have issues reading a teleprompter and giving speeches, before cutting to clips in which Trump fumbled his own speeches during both his first and current term.

"There's many ways the president could have chosen to go after a political opponent," he concluded. "Doing it by stigmatizing millions of kids with learning disabilities, that seems to be just about the cruelest."

* *contacted the White House and did not receive an immediate response.

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