Trump Targets Hakeem Jeffries and Candace Owens with ‘Low IQ’ Insults

President Donald Trump took to social media Friday evening, launching a verbal assault on House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and conservative commentator Candace Owens, labeling them as “low IQ.”

“Candace Owens’ stock, which was never very high, has fallen a long way,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “I believe, in this case, without verification, she is an extremely Low IQ individual!”

Owens has faced backlash for her controversial claims about Brigitte Macron, the first lady of France, alleging without evidence that she is transgender. This unfounded assertion has led to a defamation lawsuit from Macron and her husband, President Emmanuel Macron.

In his post, Trump shared a manipulated image depicting Owens as Time magazine’s “Vile Person of the Year,” with captions accusing her of “using rich white men” and defending “sex offenders.”

Just minutes later, Trump shifted his focus to Jeffries, whom he had previously criticized as a “low IQ person” earlier in the week.

“Hakeem ‘High Tax’ Jeffries is a Low IQ individual who is not smart enough to be ‘running’ the Democrat Party, and certainly not smart enough to be involved in running the United States of America,” Trump stated.

He continued, “It’s people like this who almost destroyed our Nation with their High Tax, Open Border Policies. In the future, Hakeem, a fine American name, will forever be known as HIGH TAX!”

Trump frequently employs the term “low IQ” against critics across various racial backgrounds. This month alone, he used it to describe figures such as Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly. However, it has been predominantly directed at minority leaders like Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

Karrin Vasby Anderson, a communications professor at Colorado State University, remarked on Trump's language: "His characterization of people of color as 'low IQ' is a racist dog whistle with a long history in the U.S."

Mississippi Democrat Rep. Bennie Thompson noted that Trump’s use of the term spans racial lines. “It’s just who Donald Trump is,” he commented. “But you know, he calls other people that, too.”

Despite these accusations, Trump maintains that he is the “least racist” president. In a 2017 interview, he claimed that accusations of racism are often weaponized against him and other conservatives.

In February, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended Trump against allegations of bigotry after he shared a video that depicted the Obamas in a derogatory manner. The video drew widespread condemnation from both sides of the political aisle.

A YouGov poll from the same month revealed that 47 percent of Americans described Trump as racist, while 24 percent disagreed and 29 percent had no opinion.

Both Jeffries and Owens, despite their opposing political views, have been vocal critics of Trump. Earlier this month, Owens, who endorsed Trump for 2024, accused him of lacking coherent thoughts and asserted that “MAGA is no longer committed to you — and you know it.”

Jeffries, the highest-ranking Democrat in the House, has labeled Trump a “wannabe king” and criticized him for being a “disaster for the economy,” also denouncing the Iran war as “reckless.”

When asked about Trump’s “Low IQ” comments on Thursday, Jeffries responded: “It's extraordinary to me that Donald Trump keeps recycling [these] low IQ insults. This is from the dumbest president ever.”