Trump drops the f-bomb live on TV breaking another presidential norm, Internet says 'what a legend'

WASHINGTON, DC: Donald Trump may have just given America a masterclass in presidential rage.

On Tuesday, June 24, the US commander-in-chief dropped a casual f-bomb on camera while going off on both Israel and Iran, furious that the ceasefire he was celebrating had already gone up in smoke.

Donald Trump drops f-bomb on live TV

Standing before reporters outside the White House, Donald Trump unleashed a tirade that had jaws dropping across news and social media.

“They [Iran] violated it [the ceasefire], but Israel violated it, too,” he fumed. “Israel, as soon as we made the deal, they came out and they dropped a load of bombs, the likes of which I've never seen before. The biggest load that we've seen.”

"I'm not happy with Israel, you know, when I say, 'OK, now you have 12 hours,' you don't go out in the first hour and just drop everything you have on them, so I'm not happy with them," he continued. “I'm not happy with Iran either, but I'm really unhappy if Israel's going out this morning because of one rocket that didn't land that was shot, perhaps by mistake that didn't land. I'm not happy about that.”

He then concluded, “We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f**k they’re doing.”

It's worth noting that Trump has made headlines for colorful language before, but a casual f-word dropped intentionally and on camera was a first. American presidents have cursed in private, sure. They’ve even been caught on hot mics. But this was classic Trump.

“This is a president that has seldom felt bound by the normal constraints of the office, and the use of profanity is typically one of those constraints,” Russell Riley, a presidential historian at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia, told NPR.

“Politics is sometimes a dirty and ugly business, and so people use language there that might be better preserved in the locker room — but in no instance do I recall a president openly using this term in a public forum," Riley explained. “Especially this particular curse word.”

Internet reacts as Donald Trump drops f-bomb on live TV

Predictably, Trump's fans on social media couldn’t get enough.

“Just when you can’t love Trump enough, he drops an F bomb on live TV,” one gushed on X.

“Trump saying the F word to the media is the funniest thing I’ve seen all week,” another posted.

One fan declared, “Trump said the f word live on air. What a legend. Meanwhile, the usual loonies on the left are in tears about it.”

Another chimed in, “Trump dropping actual f bombs but referring to nuclear as ‘the n word’ is 10/10.”

Someone else offered, “Trump saying the f word is actually the most I’ve ever related to him."

Presidential profanity isn’t new

Donald Trump isn’t the first president to curse. But we rarely hear it so publicly and so directly.

Riley, who co-chairs the Presidential Oral History Program at the Miller Center, says cursing is common behind closed doors. “I’ve heard that word come out of the mouths of former White House staff plenty over the years,” he noted. “A number of presidents have been known to use expletives behind closed doors.”

Sure, there have been hot-mic mishaps over the years. Joe Biden, when he was VP, told Barack Obama that passing the Affordable Care Act was a “big f*****g deal." That moment eventually became a meme, a fundraising slogan, and a Biden trademark.

In 2022, then-President Biden again slipped on a hot mic while surveying hurricane damage, saying, “no one f***s with a Biden.” However, his back was to the cameras.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney was also caught at least once, cursing on a hot mic. Riley recalled that Presidents Harding, Grant, Truman, Johnson, and especially Nixon also had a fondness for colorful language.

In fact, even Jimmy Carter dropped the f-bomb once. “He was under an enormous amount of pressure,” Riley explained. Carter was wrestling with whether to allow the Shah of Iran into the US for medical care. “He just broke at one point and said, ‘F the Shah,’” Riley said.

Historically, some presidents have felt the heat and issued apologies when their foul language made headlines. But that's not in Trump's nature.

“The question is whether you brazen it out or you apologize,” Riley said. “And I’m sure in this case, the president will just brazen it out.”

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