The internet has exploded with liberals’ reactions to Donald Trump’s newest winter accessory, claiming he upped his ‘swag’ after meeting with New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.
Trump sparked the social media frenzy when he stepped onto the White House‘s South Lawn on Saturday, donning a black wool coat and a burgundy scarf – a dramatic shift from his typical suit and bright-colored tie look.
The president’s apparent fashion experimentation caught the attention of left-winged journalist Aaron Rupar, who teasingly wrote on X: ‘Quite a look for Trump today.’
‘He meets with Mamdani one time and immediately tries to step his swag up,’ another liberal reporter, Ahmed Baba, replied to Rupar, referencing Trump’s surprising praise of the Democratic-socialist on Friday.
Others immediately jumped in to poke fun at Trump, pointing out his outfit’s similarity to those of fictional characters.
‘Yikes!’ political commentator Russell Drew wrote, adding that Trump looked like a mix of Star Wars villain Emperor Palpatine and Don Vito Corleone from The Godfather.
Several others also made the connection to Emperor Palpatine, who wears a black cloak and a red undershirt in the iconic film saga.
Another X user jested that Trump was dressed like Ron Burgundy, played by Will Ferrell, from the 2004 comedy Anchorman.
Donald Trump wore a black coat and a burgundy scarf while leaving the White House on Saturday
Zohran Mamdani, left, and Trump, right, held a press conference in the Oval Office on Friday
An X user Several compared Trump to Emperor Palpatine, who wears a black cloak and a red undershirt in the iconic Star Wars film saga
Left-winged journalists mocked Trump’s outfit on social media
‘Meet with Zohran once and it’s got Trump dressing like Ron Burgundy,’ they wrote alongside a photo of Ferrell’s character wearing an outfit nearly identical to Trump’s.
Many observed that Trump’s attention-grabbing outfit – which he wore to inspect the golf courses on Joint Base Andrews, a Maryland military base, with golf star Jack Nicklaus – resembled Mamdani’s style.
‘Mamdani cooked so hard Trump stole his fit,’ another agreed.
‘Trump spends one afternoon with Mamdani and suddenly Mr Suit and Tie his whole life is rocking the NYC bohemian look,’ someone quipped.
One person wrote: ‘Trump went from wrinkled tent suit with orange face paint to looking like he’s going to a poetry reading in the village. I hear they call it the Mamdani effect.’
While many Trump critics mocked the president as a Mamdani copycat, others were enraged.
Trump was heading to inspect the golf courses on Joint Base Andrews, a Maryland military base, with golf star Jack Nicklaus
Trump, pictured on September 30, often wears a suit and bright-colored tie
‘Trump is disgusting and trying to ride [Mamdani’s] coattails. It’s almost embarrassing. Mamdani can see right through it like the rest of us,’ one X account asserted.
‘Total single white female vibes,’ they added, referencing the 1992 horror drama in which a new roommate becomes alarmingly obsessed with the woman she moves in with.
One man suggested that Trump dressing like Mamdani means that he has respect for him.
He wrote: ‘Trump has a new outfit today. Coincidence? He only measures himself against men he perceives as strong and popular. Mamdani has obviously done something right.’
Trump and Mamdani’s Friday meeting sent shockwaves across both sides of the aisle, after the president seemingly embraced the NYC politician he once called to have arrested or deported.
Social media users claimed that Trump seemed to be copying Mamdani, pictured in November 2023, with his outfit
An X user jested that Trump was dressed like Ron Burgundy, played by Will Ferrell, from the 2004 comedy Anchorman
The president said conservatives will be surprised by Mamdani, who rose to power on a wave of support from younger voters frustrated by sky-high property prices.
‘I think he’s gonna surprise some conservative people, actually,’ Trump said after their meeting.
‘And some very liberal people he won’t surprise because they already like him.’
