Trump takes a dig at Macron, saying wife treats him 'badly'
Macron says Trump comments on his marriage ‘neither elegant nor up to standard’
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that Donald Trump's comments about his marriage were "neither elegant nor up to standard".
"I call up France, Macron -- whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw," US President Trump said on Wednesday, referring to a 2025 news video that appeared to show Brigitte Macron shoving the French president's face.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump made fun of the French president and his wife during a private lunch Wednesday, as he lambasted NATO allies for not joining the war against Iran that has roiled the Middle East.
"We didn't need them, but I asked anyway," Trump told a private lunch in a video posted briefly on the White House YouTube channel before access was blocked.
"I call up France, Macron -- whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw," Trump said.
He was referring to a May 2025 news video that appeared to show Brigitte Macron shoving the French president's face on a trip to Vietnam, which Macron later rejected as part of a disinformation campaign.
"And I said, 'Emmanuel, we'd love to have some help in the Gulf even though we're setting records on knocking out bad people and knocking out ballistic missiles. We'd love to have some help. If you could, could you please send ships immediately,'" Trump continued.
He then mimics a French accent to give Macron's alleged answer: "'No no no, we cannot do that, Donald. We can do that after the war is won,'" he said.
"I said, 'No no, I don't need after the war is won Emmanuel,’" Trump said.
"So I learned about NATO -- NATO won't be there if we ever have the big one, you know what I mean by the big one," Trump said, without elaborating.
He also branded NATO a "paper tiger," the latest salvo by Trump and his top officials against the transatlantic alliance since he returned to the White House last year.
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States "is going to have to reexamine" its relationship with NATO once the war against Iran has concluded.
Trump mocks French President Macron:
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) April 2, 2026
I called up France, Macron, whose wife treats him extremely badly and he’s still recovering from the right to the jaw.
pic.twitter.com/6WL57apWmX