Megyn Kelly applauded Donald Trump after he used a provocative White House Correspondents’ Dinner joke to compare CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins to transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
During his roast-heavy remarks Friday night, Trump drew the comparison by pointing to what he described as a physical resemblance between Collins and Mulvaney.
Speaking Monday on her SiriusXM program, Kelly defended the jab, arguing that Trump had cornered liberals into acknowledging their discomfort with the comparison while also striking back at a press corps she said routinely criticizes him.
‘He got up there and he gave her a little jazz, which is kind of what [presidents] do. It’s clever because it puts the left in such a difficult position, because they have to say that’s not complimentary, so they have to rip on a trans person, which they definitely don’t want to do,’ Kelly said.
Kelly also took aim at Collins, who previously worked for the conservative outlet the Daily Wire, accusing the CNN journalist of consistently hostile coverage of Trump.
‘She’s always nasty. She’s always making negative commentary about him. Her questions always have the most negative bent you could possibly go into the questioning with, so the president did what all presidents do,’ she said.
Kelly further pointed out that Trump returned to the subject on Truth Social on Sunday, again linking Collins with Mulvaney, who is transgender.
‘He’s put them in a very difficult position because you basically have to say it’s insulting to compare her to Dylan Mulvaney. Why is it insulting? Because Dylan Mulvaney’s a man. They just won’t close that circle. But we all know why they find it insulting,’ she said.
Megyn Kelly praised Donald Trump for his outrageous joke at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner comparing Kaitlan Collins to Dylan Mulvaney
Trump compared the CNN anchor’s physical likeness to transgender influencer during his roast-filled speech on Friday night
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Should public figures use jokes about gender identity to make political points at major events?
The former Fox News anchor also noted that liberals were upset with Trump referring to the likes of Chris Christie and JB Pritzker as fat but ‘didn’t seem to have a problem’ back when Wanda Sykes mocked Rush Limbaugh’s death.
‘Good for him. He goes back into the lion’s den. He knows they all hate him, and among other things, he’s getting a lot of crap,’ she said of the speech.
Earlier this week, Semafor reported that CNN leadership and staff are ‘furious’ with Trump for the comments and the network’s executives and leadership are now discussing potentially bailing on next year’s dinner.
The president has frequently sparred with Collins in Oval Office press conferences, and he took several shots at her during his remarks Friday night.
‘I thought Kaitlan had really made it big with a major new sponsorship,’ Trump said of Collins.
‘But then I informed her that it wasn’t her on the Bud Light can, it was Dylan Mulvaney.’
Mulvaney has been open with her fans about her facial feminization surgery during her transition from male to female. She also starred in her autobiographical Off-Broadway show ‘The Least Problematic Woman in the World’ in 2025.
Bud Light suffered a huge drop in sales in 2023 after Mulvaney shared images of herself with a custom beer can as part of a marketing campaign, which also marked her first full year transitioning.
Earlier today, Semafor reported that CNN leadership and staff are ‘furious’ with Trump for the comments and the network’s executives and leadership are now discussing potentially bailing on next year’s dinner
Mulvaney sparked what researchers at Harvard Business School called ‘one of the biggest boycotts in American history,’ when she partnered with Bud Light in 2023
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How should public figures balance humor with respect when discussing sensitive topics like gender identity?
The promotion detonated a backlash that quickly grew into a full-scale boycott, fueled by conservative outrage, which was amplified across social media and right-wing news outlets.
On Sunday, Trump shared an image of Collins’s face superimposed on Mulvaney’s body in the viral Bud Light advert that catapulted the trans influencer to notoriety in April 2023.
His infamous endorsement of the US-brewed beer triggered nationwide boycotts and a massive conservative backlash that the brand is only just recovering from.
Collins, responding to the first attack by Trump on Friday, wrote online: ‘The second best part of last night’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner was receiving an award from my friend and mentor, @wolfblitzer.’
She then added, ‘the first was reminding everyone why the First Amendment—and asking uncomfortable questions that people in power don’t like—matters,’ an apparent poke at Trump’s attack.
Trump’s clashes with Collins have been ongoing for many years.
The network itself defended Collins and its entire team when reached by The Daily Mail Friday for comment.
‘Kaitlan Collins is an exceptional, trusted journalist being honored tonight for her depth of knowledge and the context she provides to audiences all over the world,’ they said.
‘She reports every day from the White House and the field with real strength and tenacity and skillfully brings that reporting to the anchor chair and CNN platforms every day. We stand by her to the fullest extent.’
