What to Know
Critics of President Donald Trump have long suspected that his oldest sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, have daddy issues. And the president’s recent comments about Don Jr.’s upcoming wedding have only exacerbated these allegations, because he doesn’t even plan to attend, and the reason why is really something.
When a reporter asked the president whether he plans on attending his son’s wedding this weekend, Trump originally said he might attend, but it’s “not good timing for” him. He later took to Truth Social to announce that he will not be there. Ouch.
It’s not that Don Jr. doesn’t want him there, by the way.
He golfs every weekend but has no time for his own son’s wedding, apparently. https://t.co/nzcEu9bb1Q
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) May 21, 2026
Because it might be one thing if Don Jr. viewed his second wedding as relatively insignificant and didn’t care whether his dad attended. It doesn’t sound like that’s the case, though. Responding to the reporter, Trump said, “He’d like me to go.” However, the occasion did not sound particularly important to the president.
“It’s going to be just a small little private affair and I’m going to try and make it,” Trump explained. Which, fair enough — except normally the groom’s father would be among the people attending “a small little private affair.”
Trump went on to explain that the timing isn’t convenient for him. “I said, ‘You know, this is not good timing for me. I have a thing called Iran and other things,'” he added. He went on to say that it’s a lose-lose situation because if he attends the wedding, “the fake news” will criticize him. And if he doesn’t attend, “the fake news” will still criticize him.
That might be the case, but it also sounded like an excuse to critics online, given that he has continued to go golfing during the Iran war.
He also referred to his son as “a person I’ve known for a long time.”
https://t.co/1sbTIV6Wd9 pic.twitter.com/IB4A3z8plM
— Evan DeSimone (@Smorgasboredom) May 21, 2026
Which is definitely an interesting (and rather impersonal) way to describe your son. “Hopefully they’re gonna have a great marriage,” he said of Don Jr. and his fiancée, Bettina Anderson. The wedding will take place on a small island in the Bahamas, according to a report from CNN.
Critics on social media could not get over the excuses Trump used to get out of attending his own son’s wedding. And while some found the whole “he’s a person I’ve known for a long time” thing kind of hilarious, it also seemed like a potential sign of dementia to some critics.
Someone on X wrote, “Stealing ‘I have a thing called Iran and other things’ as my new default excuse for getting out of plans I don’t want to go to.” Another critic shared an image of Trump golfing and captioned it with, “Trump busy with ‘Iran’ stuff.”
Some people argued that he’s a bad father for this. “He has been golfing every weekend since the Iran war began, but can’t attend his son’s wedding because he has a thing called Iran and other things,” one commenter wrote. “What a s—-y father.”
All things considered, the apparent daddy issues kind of make sense to people.
Father of the century https://t.co/2f3KBSorFx
— Wu Tang is for the Children (@WUTangKids) May 22, 2026
As someone pointed out, Trump “still somehow finds time to go golfing,” but talks about “his own son like a random guy from Mar-a-Lago.” Another person wrote, “Saying ‘He’s a person I’ve known for a long time’ about your son is absolutely unbelievable.” And it actually made some people feel bad for Don Jr. “My heart breaks for Don Jr sometimes,” one commenter said.
The day after this particular clip went viral on social media, Trump took to social media to announce that he would not be attending the wedding after all. So, apparently, he’s not even going to “try” to make it now. On Friday, May 22, he shared an update via Truth Social. “While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Jr., and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government, and my love for the United States of America, do not allow me to do so,” he wrote. “I feel it is important for me to remain in Washington, D.C., at the White House during this important period of time. Congratulations to Don and Bettina!”
Critics were, of course, skeptical of this explanation and sarcastically called him “father of the century.” On X, one person reacted with, “Translation: Trump will spend the day golfing and reviewing plans for his golden ballroom.”
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