Transgender advocate and actress Dylan Mulvaney has publicly responded to President Donald Trump’s repeated mockery of her during his speech at the rescheduled 2023 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, framing the incident as a testament to her enduring influence on conservative discourse.
At the event, which was moved following a 2023 shooting near the original venue, Trump launched into a critique of CNN’s Kaitlan Collins after awarding her a satirical “Courage in Journalism” honor. He dismissed her credentials, then pivoted to Mulvaney, reviving a three-year-old controversy over her Bud Light advertising campaign that sparked a conservative boycott.
“I thought Kaitlan had made a big deal with a major sponsorship, but then I told her it wasn’t her on the can—it was Dylan Mulvaney,” Trump said, falsely claiming the ad cost Bud Light “$35 billion” in value. He added, “That was the worst commercial ever made,” while mocking Mulvaney’s appearance in edited photos circulated online.
Mulvaney, prompted by the renewed attention, posted a 4-minute video condemning the remarks. She opened by praising Collins, stating, “I’m incredibly honored to be compared to her in any way,” before addressing Trump’s fixation on her past work. “Those comments show I’m still embedded in their minds,” she said, likening the attention to a personal milestone.
The advocate tied her visibility to broader trans rights, arguing that conservative backlash proves her message resonates. “They don’t want me to show that success is possible for young people,” she said. “My freedom isn’t contingent on their approval—it’s rooted in self-acceptance.”
Mulvaney concluded by urging support for the LGBTQ+ community and closing with a rhetorical rebuttal to her critics: “Thank you for reminding me I’m more powerful than I knew.”