Trump jokes about Jon Husted’s hands at Texas rally while backing Ken Paxton
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President Donald Trump made a lighthearted aside at a Texas campaign event, referencing Senator Jon Husted’s hands while making his case for Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Senate race. Critics seized on the joke, though Trump’s broader point was to energize supporters and keep attention on the contest.
President Donald Trump addressed a rally in Texas on Tuesday, mentioning Ohio Senator Jon Husted’s hands as part of a broader push to encourage voters to back Attorney General Ken Paxton in the upcoming Senate race. Trump said he had initially commented on Husted’s appearance and then noted the senator’s “hands… fingers like sausages,” adding that he had patted Husted on the shoulder and praised him.
Trump also suggested he might use a similar style of commentary with Paxton, though he said he was not sure whether the approach would be suitable. The remarks followed a similar comment he made at a rally in Michigan the previous day.
"Maybe I should do that with Ken Paxton. But I’m not sure your body is going to qualify," Trump said, pointing to the Texas attorney general.
Media commentator Lawrence O’Donnell criticized the remarks, describing them as an unusual focus on a senator’s physical traits that he said the Texas audience was unlikely to know.
"Now Donald Trump is taking it to the point of identifying those body parts as things he likes to eat," O’Donnell said.
Polls cited in the event’s coverage indicated that Husted’s Democratic opponent, Sherrod Brown, was leading in recent surveys, contrary to Trump’s suggestion that Husted’s numbers had improved.