Headline Roundup • June 3rd, 2023
Trump Says He Doesn’t Like the Term 'Woke'
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Speaking at a Fox News (Right bias) town hall hosted by Sean Hannity in Iowa on Thursday, Former President Donald Trump said he doesn’t like the term “woke.”
For Context: Trump was speaking about parental rights and gender before digressing into his thoughts about the word “woke.”
Key Quote: “The country has gone sick… And I don’t like the term woke. Cause I hear ‘woke, woke, woke,’ you know, it’s like just a term they use. Half the people can’t even define it. They don’t know what it is.”
How The Media Covered It: Trump's "woke" comments were widely covered by left-rated, thinly by center-rated, and hardly by right-rated sources. Newsweek (Center bias) and many left-rated sources framed the former president’s comments as being critical of conservatives or Republicans, although his comments did not directly specify who he was talking about. A short version of the clip was widely circulated, but a version with more context was posted on Twitter. Some analysts believe his critique of the word is strategic, as he aims to separate himself from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the Republican primary elections.
Featured Coverage of this Story
MARIO TAMA/GETTY
Former President Donald Trump is apparently distancing himself from the conservative trend of extensively using the word "woke."
Trump suggested that the term was overused by Republicans during a 2024 presidential campaign stop in Iowa on Thursday, complaining that "half the people" who use the term do not even know what it means.
"Woke" has become a culture war buzzword among the political right in recent years. While definitions vary, it is often used as a catchall term to describe political positions or issues of which conservatives do not approve.
Donald Trump surprised a crowd in Iowa by mocking people obsessed with using the Republican buzzword “woke”, insisting that most people cannot even define what it means.
The former president has himself regularly used the phrase to attack opponents, and just last month his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr, announced the launch of a “non-woke men’s lifestyle magazine.”
The magazine, which is called Field Ethos, says that it will focus on “a forgotten lifestyle to those who refuse to conform,” with fishing and hunting articles written by “old-school adventurers who make no apologies for who we are.”
Former President Donald Trump has often used the term "woke" to slam his political enemies, but he said this week he doesn't like the term because it's too confusing for most people.
“I don’t like the term ‘woke’ because I hear, ‘Woke, woke, woke.’" Trump said while speaking at the Westside Conservative Breakfast in Urbandale, Iowa Thursday," reports The Hill. "It’s just a term they use. Half the people can’t even define it; they don’t know what it is."
His comments mark a break from his challengers for the GOP presidential...
AllSides Picks
Blog
When AOC Takes a Step Back—and Possibly Forward
Dan Schnur
August 24th, 2026
Blog
Tracking Trump’s Campaign Promises
AllSides Staff
August 13th, 2026
Headline Roundup
Trump Signs Order Renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America
August 27th, 2026
Headline Roundup
New USPS Mail-In Voting Rules Take Effect After Courts Lift Injunctions
August 27th, 2026
More News about Donald Trump on AllSides
News from the Left
News from the Center
News from the Right
CNBC
CNN Business
