Donald Trump’s nephew on Wednesday described an alleged conversation he had with his uncle in 2020 that revealed his true feelings toward disabled people.
In a Time magazine article, Fred C. Trump III spoke of navigating the challenges that he and his wife faced with their son, who is disabled.
In January 2020, he and his wife reportedly met with advocates for disabled people and with Chris Neeley, the head of a federal advisory committee for intellectually disabled people, to discuss ways to mitigate challenges faced by disabled Americans, their families and caregivers, and the need for more support for intellectually and developmentally disabled people, especially in housing and medical care.
A few months later, Fred Trump and his wife met with more White House officials, doctors, advocates and then-President Donald Trump to discuss these goals. Despite appearing interested and engaged in the meeting with his nephew, Trump reportedly shared his real thoughts with him after the meeting.
“Those people. … The shape they’re in, all the expenses, maybe those kinds of people should just die,” Trump said, according to his nephew.
The former president has previously dismissed or criticized disabled people, such as when he mocked a disabled reporter during his campaign in 2015 and when he suggested in 2019 that people with mental illnesses should be institutionalized in order to curb gun violence. More recently, his presidential campaign has attacked President Joe Biden over his age and cognitive ability.
HuffPost reached out to Trump’s 2024 campaign spokesperson but did not immediately receive a response.