--- title: Alicia Machado: Donald Trump called me 'Miss Housekeeping' description: In last night's heated debate, Hillary Clinton called out Donald Trump for his demeaning treatment of women canonical: https://time.com/4509243/donald-trump-miss-universe-alicia-machado-piggy-housekeeping/ author: Kate Samuelson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-09-27T10:52:05.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T18:41:54.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: The Former Beauty Queen Who Says Trump Called Her 'Miss Piggy' og:description: Former Miss Universe Alicia Machado came up in the debate og:url: https://time.com/4509243/donald-trump-miss-universe-alicia-machado-piggy-housekeeping/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt509200ce8f2a5eaf/6988a7a397cdffe8716adef4/ap_96051802650.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2000 og:image:height: 1125 og:image:alt: Alicia_Machado og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Former Beauty Queen Who Says Trump Called Her 'Miss Piggy' twitter:description: Former Miss Universe Alicia Machado came up in the debate twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt509200ce8f2a5eaf/6988a7a397cdffe8716adef4/ap_96051802650.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Who Is Alicia Machado? She Says Donald Trump Called Her 'Miss Piggy' > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=2a404ee1-4457-410a-955f-5833e51c7e90&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: The Trump-Clinton Debate: the Interruptions [Watch (HLS stream): The Trump-Clinton Debate: the Interruptions](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/TfOQAjNY.m3u8) (1:50)  _Published 2016-09-27. Throughout the 90-minute debate, Trump exercised all the subtle put-downs familiar to almost any woman who has sat in a business meeting with a dismissive man. He interrupted Hillary Clinton more than 50 times, according to some estimates._ by [Kate Samuelson](https://time.com/author/kate-samuelson/) ## Kate Samuelson Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:41 PM UTCPublished: Sep 27, 2016 10:52 AM UTC  Miss Universe 1996: Alicia Machado of Venezuela, Miss Universe 1996, in Las Vegas, May 18, 1996 Miss Universe 1996: Alicia Machado of Venezuela, Miss Universe 1996, in Las Vegas, May 18, 1996 Craig Moran—AP by [Kate Samuelson](https://time.com/author/kate-samuelson/) ## Kate Samuelson Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:41 PM UTCPublished: Sep 27, 2016 10:52 AM UTC [Donald Trump](http://time.com/tag/donald-trump/) doubled down on criticism of a former Miss Universe he allegedly called ‘Miss Piggy’ on Tuesday morning, saying Venezuelan beauty queen Alicia Machado was “the absolute worst” contestant they had ever had. “I know that person, she was a Miss Universe person and she was the worst we ever had — the worst, the absolute worst,” the Republican presidential hopeful said on a call in to the _Fox & Friends_ studio. “She was the winner and she gained a massive amount of weight, and it was a real problem,” he added. In last night’s presidential [debate](http://time.com/4506217/presidential-debate-clinton-trump-survey/), [Hillary Clinton](http://time.com/4508703/presidential-debate-hillary-clinton-donald-trump-hofstra-long-island/?xid=homepage) accused Trump of treating women poorly, including claims that he had insulted Machado, 39, by calling her [‘Miss Housekeeping’](http://motto.time.com/4463063/miss-universe-vote-donald-trump/) in reference to her Venezuelan heritage and ‘Miss Piggy’ when she gained 42lbs in 1997, the year after she was crowned Miss Universe aged 19\. Trump did not respond to these specific allegations. Trump, who was a partner in the company who owned the pageant at the time, also reportedly called Machado an “eating machine” and she claims he invited reporters to [watch her exercise](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1997/05/16/miss-universe-sizing-up-her-reign/4b76f45c-aaa9-4b44-8acf-39f2d4af7598/) at a New York gym. In 1997, he told [_People_](http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20143416,00.html) that a beauty pageant winner has “an obligation to stay in a perfect physical state.” > [](https://twitter.com/machadooficial/status/780604340318773248) Clinton reprimanded Trump over his alleged name-calling. “Donald, she has a name. Her name is Alicia Machado and she has become a U.S. citizen – and you can bet she’s going to vote this November,” she told him. He asked for more details about the allegation while she was speaking, but did not immediately deny it. A few hours after the debate, Clinton’s campaign released a new video in which Machado describes the treatment she says she suffered at the hands of Trump and added he threatened to take her crown away after she gained weight. “It had turned into a circus, the joke of ‘The Fat Miss Universe’,” she says. “A joke which caused me a lot of pain.” “Long after, I was sick with eating disorders. I wouldn’t eat, and would still see myself as fat, because a powerful man had said so.” > [](https://twitter.com/HillaryClinton/status/780611407221960704) Machado, who now lives in Hollywood, has been supporting Clinton on her campaign trail since she became an American citizen in August – just in time to vote in the U.S. elections. “I’m a mom, I’m a student, I’m an entrepreneur. I know @HillaryClinton is our candidate,” she wrote on Instagram. [_Inside Edition_](http://www.insideedition.com/) reports that Machado is about to sign with a major publisher to sell her memoir. ## Transcript Actually that is - >> I will bring, excuse me. I will bring back jobs . >> I think a lot about what worked and how we can make it work again . >> Well, he approved NAFTA - >> We have 3 million new jobs, a balanced budget - >> Which is the single worst trade deal ever approved in this country . >> And incomes went up . >> No, no. You're telling the enemy everything you want to do . >> No we're not. No we're not - >> See you're telling the enemy everything you want to do . >> And I wrote about that In I wrote about- You called it the gold standard. Well, I hope I- You called it the gold standard of trade deals. You said it's the finest deal you've ever seen and- No, but when it was negotiated which I wrote about that it in my- So, is President Obama's fault? Is it President Obama's fault? Look before you even announced Look, there are different- Secretary is it President Obama's fault? But you have no plan. I do. Secretary you have no plan. In fact I have written a book about it. So for the next segment- Well look, can I just finish. I think I should. [ CROSSTALK ] You go to her website, then you take a look at her website. She's gonna raise taxes $ 1. 3 trillion. And there's nothing crazy. This is absolutely. About not letting companies bring their money back in to their country. So there is. You're wrong. You're wrong. No, I'm not. Murders are up. All right, you'll check. New York has done. You'll check. Donald supported the invasion of Iraq. Wrong. Wrong. Which has been proved, over and over again. Wrong. He actually advocates- What makes your- I did not support the war in Iraq. In 2002. That is is mainstream media nonsense put out by her- Question there, sense- Just, you, would you like to hear? Why is your, why is your judgment- I was against the war, wait a minute. I was against the way, - >> Any sense about this should be a concern . >> [ CROSSTALK ] Is getting a little bit old I must say, listen - >> It's a good one though, well described the problem . >> It's an accurate at all . >> Pregnancy as an inconvenience to employer? Who have said women don't deserve equal pay unless they do as good job as men . >> Secretary Clinton two minute please . >> Let's start the clock again Lester ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4509243/donald-trump-miss-universe-alicia-machado-piggy-housekeeping/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4509243/donald-trump-miss-universe-alicia-machado-piggy-housekeeping/"},"headline":"Who Is Alicia Machado? 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