Trump's strange Putin glitch spurs uproar: 'Dude is gonzo'

President Donald Trump repeatedly erred while talking to reporters at his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the NATO summit in Turkey on Wednesday, referring to him as "Putin" — then trying to reword things to make it sound intentional. "Do you have a question for President Putin?" asked Trump, as the reporters buzzed. "Do you have a question for President Putin?" he pointed at Zelensky. A second later, he added, "What would you like to ask him, because I'm going to ask him that question," as though referring to a separate meeting at a later date. The whole exchange went viral on X, with commenters drowning the president in ridicule. "Dude is gonzo," wrote Democratic political commentator Joanne "JoJoFromJerz" Carducci. "What is incredibly disturbing is how Trump literally thought Zelensky was Putin and once he caught his dementia slip he tried to rebound doubling down on the slip up," wrote YouTuber Vince Wilson. "First, the 'Islamic Republic of Japan.' Now, 'President Putin,'" wrote criminal defense lawyer and Simple Justice blogger Scott Greenfield. "Something is seriously awry."