President Donald Trump praised Liberian President Joseph Boakai for speaking English articulately, seemingly unaware of the fact that English is Liberia’s national language.
“Such good English, that’s beautiful,” Trump said during a Wednesday meeting at the White House with five African leaders. “Where did you learn to speak so beautifully?”
Boakai chuckled awkwardly as Trump’s praise continued.
“Were you educated?” Trump pressed. When Boakai replied “Yes, sir,” Trump asked his counterpart if he went to school in Liberia, which the West African leader also confirmed.
“Well, that’s very interesting,” Trump said, again calling Boakai’s English-speaking skills “beautiful.”
President Trump to Liberian President Joseph Boakai: "Thank you and such good English, such beautiful. Where did you learn to speak so beautifully, where? Were you educated, where? In Liberia?" pic.twitter.com/WZ2LR5JZcb
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 9, 2025
Trump then joked he had advisers at Wednesday’s meeting who were less fluent in English than Boakai.
A fact sheet published by the CIA says 20% of Liberians speak English in the predominantly Christian nation settled by freed U.S. slaves in the 19th century. More than two dozen indigenous languages are also spoken in the country, including variants of Liberian English.
According to his official biography page, Boakai, 80, attended secondary school at the reputable College of West Africa before earning a degree from the University of Liberia. He also attended Kansas State University.
Trump similarly complimented French leader Emmanuel Macron for speaking French when the pair met at the White House in February.
“I have no idea what he said but that is the most elegant, beautiful language,” Trump interjected during their discussion.
Leaders from Senegal, Gabon, Mauritania and Guinea-Bissau were also in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday to meet with the president, who told them their countries had “valuable land, great minerals, and great oil deposits, and wonderful people.”
During his first term in office, Trump referred to African nations as “sh—hole countries” when rejecting a bipartisan immigration deal that would extend protections against deportation for hundreds of thousands of young immigrants.
