A White House roundtable on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, took an unexpected turn when President Donald Trump complimented a conservative commentator who claimed she had overcome “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” sparking widespread criticism and mockery across social media platforms.
Brandi Kruse, a 37-year-old former mainstream television journalist turned conservative podcaster from Seattle, told the 79-year-old president during the 90-minute session that she represented living proof of recovery from what MAGA supporters call TDS—a derogatory term describing liberals’ negative reactions to the president.
Kruse explained that she had suffered from strong Trump Derangement Syndrome for approximately eight years but had since recovered. She attributed her transformation to experiences covering left-wing violence, claiming that life without “TDS” had made her happier, healthier, and more successful. She then added that she believed she had become somewhat more attractive after eliminating her Trump derangement.
Trump immediately responded by calling her “very attractive,” prompting laughter in the room. He later told Kruse he felt very good about her recovery from TDS.
The exchange occurred during a roundtable meeting focused on Antifa, the anti-fascist movement that the Trump administration has designated as a domestic terrorist organization. The session began with cabinet members, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, praising the president’s efforts to dismantle what they described as radical left-wing networks.
Trump invited conservative influencers and commentators who had been on the ground in Portland to share their experiences with Antifa. Kruse, who hosts a show called “unDivided with Brandi Kruse,” used part of her time to attack the White House correspondents present at the meeting. She stated she could not care less what they had to say about the session, emphasizing that attendees were not there for the mainstream media.
Kruse told reporters she was not present to convince them that Antifa represented a real threat, asserting that those who had not reached that conclusion by now would never do so because they did not want to see the evidence.
Other attendees included Jonathan Choe, who described himself as an investigative reporter for Frontlines Turning Point USA and senior fellow at the Discovery Institute in Seattle. He called on the administration to examine Antifa’s alleged ties to the homeless crisis, claiming the group was heavily embedded in the homeless and housing nonprofit sector.
Independent investigative journalist Katie Daviscourt recounted her experience of being injured during a protest at a Portland ICE facility. She appeared at the roundtable with a black eye and concussion after being violently struck in the face with a pole while reporting outside the facility the previous week. She described how black-clad anarchist militants, concealing their faces behind facial coverings, had been assaulting reporters attempting to cover their activities.
Independent journalist Nick Sortor, who was arrested during a demonstration at the ICE building in Portland, produced an American flag he claimed was burned by a protester. Trump asked him to give the flag to Attorney General Bondi so prosecutors could pursue charges against those who burned it.
At one point during the meeting, Trump referred to the White House press as “the garbage standing over here” and polled his MAGA guests about which mainstream television networks were the worst.
Social media critics quickly seized on the exchange between Trump and Kruse. Former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan wrote that he was glad he had not eaten lunch that day or he would have thrown it up. Other commentators labeled the moment as perfect source material for a Saturday Night Live sketch, describing it as insane, embarrassing, and further evidence that the MAGA movement operates like a cult.
The roundtable came amid escalating tensions over Trump’s push to deploy military forces in Democratic-controlled cities to quell violence related to crime and support for his mass deportation strategy. In Portland, a federal judge temporarily blocked his plan to send troops after determining no violent insurgency existed to justify such action. In Chicago, hundreds of National Guard members from Texas and Illinois were being deployed ahead of a court case challenging the president’s efforts.
Trump indicated he would consider invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807 if necessary, telling reporters on October 6 that if people were being killed and courts or local officials were obstructing federal action, he would not hesitate to use that authority.
Despite discussions at the roundtable, no evidence of an organized Antifa group traveling between Portland and Seattle was presented. Law enforcement sources have noted that Antifa lacks a detailed organized leadership structure.