Saturday, March 29, 2025
Trump Publicly Tells Australian Envoy Kevin Rudd “I Don’t Like You” During White House Event — Video Goes Viral
Washington, October 21, 2025:
A diplomatic event at the White House took an unexpected turn when U.S. President Donald Trump bluntly told Australian Ambassador and former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, “I don’t like you, and I probably never will.” The comment came in front of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who was on an official visit to Washington for the signing of a rare earth minerals trade deal between the U.S. and Australia.
You can actually pinpoint the second when Kevin Rudd’s heart gets ripped in half by President Trump. pic.twitter.com/T258AC04cF
— Australians vs. The Agenda (@ausvstheagenda) October 20, 2025
During the press conference, a reporter asked Trump about Rudd’s past criticisms of him. With a smirk, Trump replied,
“Maybe he’d like to apologize.”
Turning toward Albanese, Trump asked,
“Where is he? Does he still work for you?”
Albanese, visibly amused, pointed across the table to Rudd, who was seated directly opposite Trump. Rudd quickly interjected, “Mr. President, that was before I took this job.”
As laughter spread across the room, Trump interrupted again and said sharply,
“I don’t like you. I don’t like you, and maybe I never will.”
The remark drew laughter from both delegations, though the atmosphere briefly turned tense before reporters moved to the next question.
Later, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong downplayed the exchange, telling Nine Network,
“We all heard the laughter. It was a light moment. The meeting was very successful, and Kevin deserves much of the credit.”
Kevin Rudd, a former Labor Party Prime Minister, had strongly criticized Trump after the 2020 U.S. election defeat, calling him “the most destructive president in history” and “a traitor to the West.” Rudd accused Trump of dragging democracy “through the mud” after the Capitol riots.
When Trump regained the presidency last year, Rudd deleted his old posts from social media. Despite that, Trump seems to have not forgotten the remarks.
During his 2024 campaign, Trump even told British right-wing politician Nigel Farage in an interview that Rudd was “terrible” and predicted “he won’t last long as ambassador.”
Rudd, who is fluent in Mandarin and known for his expertise on China, was appointed ambassador by former U.S. President Joe Biden to strengthen ties with Washington. His current position puts him in close proximity to Trump — and apparently in the crosshairs of Trump’s sharp tongue once again.
Despite the tense exchange, the White House confirmed that the U.S.-Australia rare earth agreement remains “fully intact” and that the meeting achieved “strong bilateral progress.”
