Most people have strong feelings about President Donald Trump today, but prior to his involvement in politics, he obviously didn’t come up in conversation like he does now. Interestingly, back in 2012, Robin Williams actually warned people about Trump before his first presidential campaign was even launched. Given that Trump was not president at that time, Williams’ criticism wasn’t political in nature. He had other reasons for being concerned about Trump. And now, close to 15 years later, his warning still feels relevant.
Williams’ 2012 stand-up routine recently resurfaced on social media, and people think he was onto something. At the time, the late actor spoke about Trump’s involvement in beauty pageants. In 2012, Trump still co-owned the Miss Universe Organization.
This didn’t seem right to Williams.
“He owns all these beauty pageants,” Williams said during his routine. “Miss America, Miss Universe. Isn’t that a bit like Michael Vick owning a series of pet stores?
Obviously, Williams found this creepy, as he mentioned the disturbing comments Trump has made about his own daughter Ivanka. “It’s a f—ing catch and release program for him,” he continued. “This is a man who said, ‘My daughter is hot.’ Even people in Arkansas went, ‘That’s f—ing wrong.'”
At another point during the same routine, Williams called Trump “scary.”
The clip has resurfaced on social media, where people have said we should have listened to Williams.
And, to be fair, many people did listen to Williams, or agree with him at the time. Still, Trump obviously managed to get elected twice. “Robin Williams saw straight through the vulgar mf ages ago, apparently,” one person wrote on Reddit after the clip resurfaced in June 2026. “That ‘catch and release’-line is gold, and shall not be forgotten!”
“We all did,” someone else argued. “Knowing donald trump is a sleaze was just a given before all this s— got started. nobody took that idiot seriously.”
But apparently, some people did. One Redditor blamed Trump’s reality TV days for this. “Blame the Apprentice for making millions think he was smart and powerful,” they wrote.
People started talking about Williams’ joke again on Father’s Day.
Robin Williams warned the US about Donald Trump and his links to Miss America Pageants and underage girls in 2012.
— BladeoftheSun (@BladeoftheS) June 21, 2026
Really should have listened. pic.twitter.com/qcdWloo9dO
The clip has resurfaced a couple of times amid concerns about Trump’s friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But an account called BladeoftheSun also shared the clip on June 21 and wrote, “Robin Williams warned the US about Donald Trump and his links to Miss America Pageants and underage girls in 2012. Really should have listened.”
That same day, multiple creepy comments Trump had made about his own daughter also resurfaced. As Williams mentioned during his stand-up set, Trump has made numerous disgusting comments about his daughter Ivanka’s appearance, which people were reminded of when she took to social media to wish him a happy Father’s Day.
Six years prior to Williams’ stand-up routine, Trump went on The View and said, “If Ivanka weren’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her.” And two years before that, he told Howard Stern that he could refer to Ivanka as a “piece of a–.”
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