At the NATO summit, Mark Latte said Trump, “Daddy has to use strong languages at times.” The White House then posted a “Daddy’s House” video with Usher’s song.
NATO Chief denies calling Trump “daddy” during the Alliance Summit
NATO Executive Director Mark Latte said he did not call President Donald Trump “dad,” and described the statement as a hidden phony of US leadership.
- NATO Executive Director Mark Latte commented on “Daddy.” The White House used the idea in social videos.
- Latte later revealed that he didn’t specifically mention Trump when he said “daddy,” but generally on US leadership.
- NATO leaders have approved Trump’s main demand, an increase in defense spending.
- Usher’s song “Hey Daddy” is often used in social media videos depicting frivolous or sexual videos of men.
The White House jumped at comments from NATO leaders who appeared to call President Donald Trump “daddy.”
NATO Executive Director Mark Latte later said that when he said, “Daddy must sometimes use strong language,” he specifically said he wasn’t talking about Trump.
But that didn’t stop the White House from making Trump’s visit to The Hague, set for “Hey Papa” by Usher, “Hey Papa (Papa’s House).”. This song is often used in Tiktok videos as a background for male flirty or sexual videos.
Trump was in the Netherlands for the summit on June 24th and 25th. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chief of Staff Susie Wills, Defense Secretary Pete Hegses, also traveled with Trump. The 32-nation alliance agreed to increase defensive spending, which Trump called victory.
Who called Trump “daddy”?
NATO secretary Mark Latte used the term “daddy,” but denied using it to describe Trump.
“Daddy has to use a strong language from time to time,” Latte said. On his way to the summit, Trump cursed him when he spoke about the Iran-Israel ceasefire.
Latte said he used “daddy” to refer to US leadership in general, explaining that he saw how some European countries talk about the US as a relationship between children’s parents.
Mark Latte’s message to Trump: “It’s your victory”
NATO leaders generally complemented Trump, hoping that he would agree to mutual defense principles.
The praise began before the summit, with texts from Latte to Trump that the president later posted on social media.
“Donald, you have driven us to moments that are truly, really, important to America, Europe and the world,” Latte’s message read. “Let’s have a safe trip and see you at dinner under His!”
NATO Summit Summit Summit Summit: Alliance gives Trump higher spending
NATO stands for North Atlantic Treaty Agency, a security alliance from 32 countries in North America and Europe. The NATO summit takes place at a critical moment in the alliance rather than at a normal period. The final summit took place in Washington, DC in July 2024.
On June 25, NATO leaders approved higher defensive spending than Trump requested.
“We reaffirm the iron’s round-shaped commitment to collective defense, engraved in Article 5 of the Washington Convention, that an attack on one person is all attacks,” the communicado said, according to Reuters.
Contributors: John Bacon, Francesca Chambers, Jorge L. Ortiz, Nicole Fallett, USA TODAY
Kinsey Crowley is a Trump Connect reporter for the USA Today Network. Contact her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and Tiktok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.
