Trump’s dyslexia barbs stir anguish and anger, perpetuating a myth about the learning disability

Lauryn Muller sits at her home Monday, April 13, 2026, in Coral Springs, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier) 2026-04-18T11:46:45Z WASHINGTON (AP) — Lauryn Muller was scrolling on social media when she saw a clip of President Donald Trump belittling California Gov. Gavin Newsom for having dyslexia. It stirred a well of emotion for the 18-year-old Muller, bringing back memories of her own struggles learning to read and the times she felt something was wrong with her. Trump called Newsom “stupid,” “low IQ,” “mentally disabled” and unfit to become president. Muller knew it was part of a political feud — Trump is a Republican and Newsom is a Democrat who is expected to run for the White House in 2028 — but Trump’s words felt personal. “We’ve had to overcome so many deficits, and for someone to, on a national stage, say, yeah, they will never be like us — that definitely came as an emotional sting to me,” said Muller, an incoming student at Auburn University whose dyslexia was identified as a child. It was one more entry in Trump’s history of denigrating the intelligence of his foes and mocking those with disabilities. Yet this time he was maligning tens of millions of people, calling their abilities into question and undermining years of progress fighting stigma around dyslexia. Among those with dyslexia, his remarks aroused feelings from anguish and anger to dismay. It cut across politics, drawing a rebuke from supporters and critics alike. Muller’s mother, Marilyn, voted for Trump three times and says she still supports his politics. But she was hurt when Trump linked dyslexia with low intelligence — a dated myth that she has spent years trying to dispel. “It works against everything I do on a daily basis,” said Marilyn Muller, a literacy advocate in Florida. “It was probably one of the more ignorant comments I have ever heard come from his mouth.” (