Speaking on his Triggered podcast, Donald Trump Jr. referred to Democratic Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman as the "vegetable Senator from Pennsylvania," mocking him for the auditory processing disorder he developed after experiencing a stroke last year.
Fetterman uses a captioning device to read interview questions and follow Senate proceedings, a common practice among people with auditory processing or hearing issues, such as those that would happen as a result of a stroke.
Trump Jr. suggested Fetterman's election win is illegitimate and implied no one would vote for a "vegetable" to represent them unless their ballots had been harvested, a common talking point among conservatives who've embraced lies and conspiracy theories about electoral fraud.
His remark proved so tasteless that even his guest, Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, corrected him.
You can hear what Trump Jr. said in the video below.
Trump Jr. said:
"Yeah, I think in national elections right now we're up against a lot. We're up against a ballot harvesting machine [and] a two-month long Election Day."
"I have a feeling the people who elected the vegetable Senator from Pennsylvania, I have a feeling that a lot of the people who cast those ballots probably couldn't tell you who's on the ballot for the Senate in Pennsylvania."
A visibly uncomfortable Greene noted Fetterman "is back in the hospital by the way," referencing Fetterman's decision this week to check himself in to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to receive treatment for clinical depression.
Greene, appearing to refer to Congress at large, said "we wish him well" but that didn't stop Trump Jr. from continuing to suggest Fetterman's disability and health problems disqualify him:
"[And] I wish him well, I don’t mean him any harm but I could see that a mile away and I was criticized for being an ableist, meaning I'm discriminating against someone with disabilities for expecting a United States Senator to have basic cognitive function. I don't think that's negotiable."
"You can call me whatever the f**k you want. That's a no-brainer."
Greene did agree with Trump Jr. here, saying it comes down to "the ability to do the job" and that Congress "need[s] someone that’s thinking really well.”
Trump Jr.'s remarks received heated criticism online though Greene was not spared either.
Neurologists have noted that auditory processing and hearing issues are no indication of overall intelligence.
There is no indication Fetterman's intelligence has been compromised, despite attacks from prominent Republicans who have continued to raise questions about Fetterman's health and capacity to lead.
According to neuro-audiology experts who spoke to Washington Post reporters after an interview Fetterman gave in October about his recovery process, it is likely he is showing signs of aphasia, an auditory processing disorder that is caused when regions of the brain responsible for language are damaged, such as after a stroke.
Experts said "aphasia does not affect intelligence, decision-making, planning or other cognitive functions in the brain," noting that it "can be treated and improved over time through therapy."
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