Country Singer Tells Concert Fans She Is 'Ashamed' President Donald Trump Is From the United States

Natalie Maines of The Chicks criticised President Donald Trump at New York's Beacon Theatre on Monday, 12 October. She told concertgoers she was 'ashamed' he was American, prompting an angry White House response three days later.

Maines was revisiting the backlash the band faced after she criticised then-President George W. Bush in 2003. That earlier confrontation damaged the group's relationship with country radio and helped shape the album it is now celebrating on tour.

White House spokesman Davis Ingle responded on Thursday, 15 October, calling the singer a 'despicable nobody' in comments given to Us Weekly. His statement revived an exchange that had already turned hostile on social media earlier this year.

Donald Trump Remark Revives The Chicks' Old Controversy

At the Beacon Theatre, archival footage reminded concertgoers of the criticism that followed Maines's comments about Bush. The segment formed part of the band's 20th anniversary performances of its 2006 album Taking the Long Way.

'We thought that was the worst it could get,' Maines told the audience, according to Billboard's concert account.

'Now I'd give George W. Bush a big wet kiss 'cause now we're ashamed the president of the United States is from the United States.'

Her reference to Bush was a rhetorical comparison, not an explicit endorsement of his presidency. Maines's revised line replaced the home state named in her original complaint with the country itself.

Nor did the sentiment first appear in New York. A Chicago Sun-Times review published on 4 October reported that Maines made a similar remark during a Chicago performance the previous evening, drawing applause from the audience.

The anniversary tour began in Detroit on 30 September, according to promoter Live Nation. Maines is appearing with fellow Chicks members Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer, performing Taking the Long Way in full alongside older favourites.

How The Chicks' 2003 Protest Against Bush Changed Their Career

On 10 March 2003, shortly before the US-led invasion of Iraq, Maines addressed a London audience with a statement that followed The Chicks for years.

'We're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas,' she said, referring to Bush and the prospect of war.

The reaction in the United States was fierce. Some country stations removed the band's songs from their playlists, while demonstrators publicly destroyed its music. Maines initially apologised for the wording of her criticism but withdrew that apology in 2006.

The band was still called the Dixie Chicks when it released Taking the Long Way that year. Its track 'Not Ready to Make Nice' confronted the hostility the members had faced, rather than treating the episode as something best forgotten.

The record won five Grammy Awards in 2007, including Album of the Year. The trio dropped 'Dixie' from its name in 2020, and its current concerts have returned to the period that shaped one of its best-known songs.

Donald Trump's White House Delivers Another Personal Rebuke

Ingle's statement, provided to Us Weekly on 15 October, left little doubt about the White House's response to Maines.

'Natalie Maines is a despicable nobody who clearly suffers from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome that has completely rotted her peanut-sized brain,' he said.

The phrase 'Trump Derangement Syndrome' is a political insult, not a recognised medical diagnosis. The statement attacked Maines personally without addressing her comparison between the two presidents.

It was not their first confrontation this year. In May, Maines criticised Trump on Instagram, writing, 'Our democracy is disappearing right before our eyes.' A White House spokesperson replied with a similar insult, again describing the singer as a 'despicable nobody.'

The band is also selling concert T-shirts bearing Maines's updated line about the president, according to Entertainment Weekly. That merchandise gives the remark a life beyond the show where it was repeated.

No comparable country radio boycott has been documented in the reporting reviewed. The Chicks are continuing their anniversary concerts, with the old footage still playing and Maines's new version of the line drawing attention of its own.