President Donald Trump turned a simple children’s book reading into an impromptu presidential roast Friday, repeatedly veering off-script during an appearance on Second Lady Usha Vance’s podcast to deliver unscripted quips about some of his White House predecessors.
Trump joined Vance to read the children’s book President’s Play, but the story frequently took a back seat as the president offered colorful commentary on former commanders in chief, mixing humor, personal observations and a little self-deprecation.
When the book reached John F. Kennedy, Trump praised the late president’s appearance before jokingly ranking himself just behind him.
“He was handsome. He was the second-most good-looking president, they say.”
Trump also took a playful jab at Barack Obama, poking fun at the former president’s well-known love of sports.
“Obama is a basketball player. I don’t know if he’s a good basketball player, I tend to doubt it. Actually, his favorite sport is golf … But he won’t be in the Masters anytime soon.”
The president then turned the joke on himself while discussing William Howard Taft, the nation’s heaviest commander in chief.
“He was our heaviest president, and I have to be careful, because I don’t want to supersede his record, and a thing like that would be possible if I allowed it to happen.”
The lighthearted appearance offered a rare glimpse of Trump’s unscripted style in a family-friendly setting. Rather than sticking closely to the children’s book, he repeatedly paused to inject personal anecdotes and one-liners about the presidents featured in its pages, drawing attention away from the story itself.
Watch the episode below:
Usha has a very special guest on her podcast today, President Donald J. Trump! It’s great and one of my favorite episodes so far pic.twitter.com/bs2WttHVCS
— JD Vance (@JDVance) July 3, 2026
