Topline
President Donald Trump described Somalia as “filthy, dirty, disgusting” while complaining that the U.S. admits migrants from “s–thole countries” in a speech Tuesday on affordability, reprising a slur he denied using in 2018.
President Donald Trump delivers remarks during an event at Mount Airy Casino Resort on December 9, 2025 in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
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Key Facts
Trump told the crowd in Pennsylvania that he “announced a permanent pause” last week “on Third World migration, including from hellholes like Afghanistan, Haiti, Somalia and many other countries.”
He then went on to reference a 2018 meeting in which he was accused of using “s—thole” to describe some countries in Africa—admitting to using the slur after denying it at the time.
“We had a meeting and I said, ‘Why is it we only take people from shithole countries,’ right? ‘Why can’t we have some people from Norway, Sweden?’”
Trump said “we always take people from Somalia . . . places that are a disaster. Filthy, dirty, disgusting, ridden with crime.”
Trump has repeatedly derided Somalia in recent weeks while discussing a series of fraud cases in Minnesota in which the defendants have Somali ties—he called Somalians “garbage” in a cabinet meeting last week, where he said “they contribute nothing. I don’t want them in our country.”
He also disparaged Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., who is from Somalia, during Tuesday’s speech, telling the crowd “I love this Ilhan Omar, whatever the hell her name is. With her little turban,” referring to Omar’s hijab. “I love her. She comes in, does nothing but bitch. She’s always complaining. She comes from her country where, I mean it’s considered about the worst country in the world.”
What To Watch For
Trump announced the ban on migration from 19 countries, including Somalia and Afghanistan, after two National Guard members were shot in Washington, D.C., by a 29-year-old from Afghanistan who was admitted to the U.S. in 2021, according to officials. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said the ban could be extended to 30 states.