--- title: White House Denies Trump's Gillibrand Tweet Was Sexist description: The White House strongly denied that President Trump was making a sexist comment when he tweeted about Sen. Kirsten Gellibrand. canonical: https://time.com/5061456/donald-trump-kirsten-gillibrand-tweet-sexist/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-12-12T21:06:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T18:32:49.659Z article:section: Politics og:title: White House Denies Trump's Gillibrand Tweet Was Sexist: 'Only If Your Mind Is in the Gutter' og:description: "There’s no way that this is sexist at all." og:url: https://time.com/5061456/donald-trump-kirsten-gillibrand-tweet-sexist/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt52d0edc13bb58bce/6988e63c22fb8543f0e23ba9/gettyimages-874627834.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5297 og:image:height: 2980 og:image:alt: Sexual Harassment Presser og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: White House Denies Trump's Gillibrand Tweet Was Sexist: 'Only If Your Mind Is in the Gutter' twitter:description: "There’s no way that this is sexist at all." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt52d0edc13bb58bce/6988e63c22fb8543f0e23ba9/gettyimages-874627834.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # White House Denies Trump's Gillibrand Tweet Was Sexist: 'Only If Your Mind Is in the Gutter' > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f55ab9f4-2601-4519-8914-28f542bfc817&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1)  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Dec 12, 2017 9:06 PM UTC  Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., holds a news conference in the Capitol Visitor Center to introduce legislation that aims to address and prevent sexual harassment for Capitol Hill staff on November 15, 2017. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., holds a news conference in the Capitol Visitor Center to introduce legislation that aims to address and prevent sexual harassment for Capitol Hill staff on November 15, 2017. Tom Williams—CQ-Roll Call,Inc.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Dec 12, 2017 9:06 PM UTC The White House strongly denied that President Trump was making a sexist comment when [he tweeted that Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/940567812053053441) “would do anything” for campaign donations. Speaking at the daily press briefing Tuesday, spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that Trump’s remark about the New York Democrat was about a corrupt political system and noted he’s made similar remarks about male politicians. “There’s no way that this is sexist at all, this is simply talking about a system that we have that is broken,” she said. “This is the same sentiment that the president has expressed many times before when he has exposed the corruption of the entire political system. … Politicians repeatedly beg for money, that’s not something new.” > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/940567812053053441) Trump’s remark was harshly criticized by Democrats, including Gillibrand, whose [response garnered more engagement](http://time.com/5060794/donald-trump-kirsten-gillibran-tweets/) on Twitter than Trump’s original tweet. Many argued that it was sexist, with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren even calling it “[slut-shaming,](http://time.com/5060794/donald-trump-kirsten-gillibran-tweets/)” an argument Sanders pushed back on. In March 2016, [Trump said](http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/03/politics/donald-trump-mitt-romney-would-have-dropped-to-his-knees-for-my-endorsement/index.html) former Massachusetts governor was “begging” for his endorsement. “I could have said, ‘Mitt, drop to your knees,'” Trump said at the time. “He would have dropped to his knees.” Sanders chastised anyone who read Trump’s comment about Gillibrand as sexual innuendo. “I think only if your mind is in the gutter would you have read it that way,” she said, arguing that the president does not owe Gillibrand an apology. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5061456/donald-trump-kirsten-gillibrand-tweet-sexist/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5061456/donald-trump-kirsten-gillibrand-tweet-sexist/"},"headline":"White House Denies Trump's Gillibrand Tweet Was Sexist: 'Only If Your Mind Is in the Gutter'","datePublished":"2017-12-12T21:06:56.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T18:32:49.659Z","description":"The White House strongly denied that President Trump was making a sexist comment when he tweeted about Sen. 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