Trump Explains His Bizarre Lisp In Elon Musk Interview & We're More Confused Than Ever

Donald Trump has served up a very confusing excuse for his apparent lisp during his viral trainwreck of an interview with X owner Elon Musk. The fellow billionaires have had some interesting interactions over the years, between Musk's assertion that Trump didn't give him the idea to buy Twitter and Musk's total U-turn in his support of Trump, which came after years of his very public critical assessments of the former president, so people from all over the political spectrum were eager to see what a conversation between the on-again, off-again frenemies, on Musk's X platform, would amount to. Unsurprisingly, Trump and Musk's interview totally crashed and burned in a multitude of ways. 

Given the players involved, it'd be easy to assume we were talking about the content matter, but their talking points weren't the focal point for many. The most noteworthy part of the interview was that many listeners struggled to decipher portions of Trump's speech, thanks to what many perceived as a lisp. "Trump is slurring in a way I've never heard from him before," tweeted one user on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Elon sounds like this is maybe the third or fourth time he's had a conversation with a fellow human." Another user tweeted a segment where Trump appeared to struggle to speak clearly while discussing which states didn't measure up in the American educational system.

Of course, Trump has concocted a rather confusing reason for the sound of his voice — the internet.

Okay, technically, Donald Trump credited his apparent lisp to a variety of technical inconveniences. "Unfortunately, because of the complexity of modern-day equipment and cellphone technology, my voice was, in certain areas, somewhat different and strange," the former president wrote on his Truth Social account. "Therefore, we have put out an actual, and perfect, recording of the conversation. ENJOY!!!" Trump's excuse came after he lauded Musk for endorsing him and hosting their exchange. "My conversation with Elon last night was heard by a RECORD audience, and was really something special, as Elon himself is very special — and I thank him for such a strong Endorsement!" he said. 

Conveniently, he didn't place any of the blame directly on X, formerly known as Twitter, but most users are focused on much more serious possibilities, including potential health issues on his end. "Everyone is talking about how Trump was lisping during his disastrous Spaces chat with Elon Musk," tweeted one user, adding, "Acquired lisps in adults can be caused by a stroke or certain neurological conditions. Perhaps a full medical exam is in order?" A second user, who lists their profession as an M.D., wrote, "Trump might've had a mini-stroke that has affected his ability to speak. Alzheimer's disease patients lisp, too. Kamala should request a comprehensive cognitive evaluation of Trump."

Unfortunately, we're not any closer to finding out what really went down.

Donald Trump's biggest presidential opponent, Kamala Harris, also chimed in on the conversation revolving around his big interview with Elon Musk. However, the vice president — who's hoping to get bumped up to POTUS status — wasn't as focused on what Trump sounded like as she was on his agenda. "Donald Trump's extremism and dangerous Project 2025 agenda is a feature not a glitch of his campaign, which was on full display for those unlucky enough to listen in tonight during whatever that was on X. com," she tweeted in an official statement on August 12. Harris, who's taken a noticeably more direct approach to her campaign than some of her predecessors, also claimed that Trump and Musk were rich, self-serving, and technologically incompetent. 

Harris may eventually get the chance to criticize Musk in person, or at least over the phone, as the Tesla CEO has made her a surprising offer. Taking to X, Musk revealed that he'd also be willing to host a conversation with her on his platform. "Happy to host Kamala on an X Spaces too," he tweeted that same day. That said, it's unclear if the conversation between him and Harris would be unbiased, given his enthusiastic backing of Trump. Ironically, Musk retweeted a comparison that framed Time Magazine headlines about Trump and Harris as unfair, and he seemed to be clearly on Trump's side. "So obvious," he captioned a user's post complaining about media bias.