WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is fond of using unflattering comparisons and backhanded nicknames to describe his political rivals. Jeb Bush was "low-energy," Marco Rubio became "Little Marco," Joe Biden was called "Sleepy Joe," and so on. On Friday, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigeig became "Alfred E. Neuman." In an interview with Politico, Trump said “Alfred E. Neuman cannot become president of the United States," referring to Buttigieg. Alfred E. Neuman is the longtime wispy haired boy mascot of MAD magazine. When asked, Buttigieg told Politico, "I’ll be honest. I had to Google that," he said. "I guess it’s just a generational thing. I didn’t get the reference." "But he’s also the president of the United States," Buttigieg continued, before referencing the ongoing U.S.-China trade talks. "I’m surprised he’s not spending more time trying to salvage this China deal." Trade talks collapse:U.S., China break off latest trade talks without a deal, as new tariffs rile markets How the trade war with China could affect you:Higher prices, lost jobs and falling stocks To some, the comment seemed dated. New York Times White House correspondent Maggie Haberman noted that such a reference "might have worked better twenty years ago." The magazine hit back, asking on Twitter: "Who’s Pete Buttigieg? Must be a generational thing."<doc-sep>President Donald Trump offered an over-the-top pronunciation of South Bend, Indiana, mayor and 2020 presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg's name. "We have a young man, Buttigieg," Trump said in a speech on Wednesday. "Boot-EDGE-EDGE. They say 'EDGE-EDGE.'" After getting through the pronunciation of his name, Trump went on to downplay Buttigieg's foreign-policy experience in his speech. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. President Donald Trump offered an over-the-top pronunciation of South Bend, Indiana, mayor and 2020 presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg's name during a rally in Panama City Beach, Florida on Wednesday. "We have a young man, Buttigieg," Trump said in his speech. "Boot-EDGE-EDGE. They say 'EDGE-EDGE.'" Read more: How to pronounce the names of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates Buttigieg says his last name is pronounced "BOOT-edge-edge," however, his husband, Chasten, uses the phonetic pronouncer "buddha-judge" or "boot-a-judge." Buttigieg's name has confounded other celebrities — media mogul Oprah Winfrey's playful nickname for the 2020 candidate is "Buttabeep, Buttaboop." Buttigieg says he's used to the confusion: "Most people have trouble pronouncing my name, so they just call me "Mayor Pete," he wrote in a Medium post in 2016. "My surname, Buttigieg (Boot-edge-edge), is very common in my father's country of origin, the tiny island of Malta, and nowhere else." After getting through the pronunciation of his name, Trump went on to downplay Buttigieg's foreign-policy experience in his speech. Read more: Pete Buttigieg is running for president in 2020. Here's everything we know about the candidate and how he stacks up against the competition. "He's got a great chance doesn't he," Trump said. "He'll be great, he'll be great. Representing us against President Xi of China. That'll be great, that'll be great. I want to be in that room, I want to watch that one." Prior to becoming mayor, Buttigieg was a US Navy intelligence officer, graduated from Oxford University with a degree in politics, worked in a multinational consulting firm, and can speak seven languages.<doc-sep>Presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegThe Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Uber - One year later — has George Floyd's killing changed the world? Bipartisan infrastructure talks on life support Buttigieg acknowledges 'daylight' between White House, GOP on infrastructure MORE (D) responded to President Trump Donald TrumpTrump lashes out after grand jury seated for New York criminal probe Schumer tees up vote on Jan. 6 commission bill Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE nicknaming him "Alfred E. Neuman," saying the insult was generational. "I’ll be honest. I had to Google that," Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Ind., told reporters in San Francisco on Friday. "I guess it’s just a generational thing. I didn’t get the reference. It's kind of funny, I guess, but he’s also the president of the United States, and I’m surprised he’s not spending more time trying to salvage this China deal." Ouch! Mayor @Pete Buttigieg responds to ⁦@realDonaldTrump⁩ slam that he is “Alfred E Neuman” —“I had to Google that..I guess it’s a generational thing.” pic.twitter.com/ZL11noISYL — Carla Marinucci (@cmarinucci) May 11, 2019 Trade talks between Washington and Beijing ended without an agreement Friday, raising the specter of a prolonged trade war between the two economic titans. ADVERTISEMENT Trump first introduced the nickname Friday in an exclusive interview with Politico, referencing the gap-toothed, red-haired and big-eared boy who has appeared on the cover of Mad magazine for decades. "Alfred E. Neuman cannot become president of the United States," the president said of Buttigieg. The only openly gay candidate in the Democratic primary field, Buttigieg has recently enjoyed a spike in support, shooting up near the top of several national and statewide polls and raking in $7 million in the first quarter of 2019, outpacing several other candidates with higher name recognition. Friday’s put-down was not the first time Trump has gone after Buttigieg. "We have a young man, Buttigieg. Boot-edge-edge. They say 'edge-edge,'" Trump said at a Florida rally this week. "He's got a great chance, doesn’t he?" "He’ll be great representing us against President Xi of China. That’ll be great. I want to be in that room. I want to watch that one," he added. The mayor responded the next day that he wasn’t "too worried" about the insults. "You can't get too worried about the name calling and the games he plays," said Buttigieg. "I was thinking of a Chinese proverb that goes, when the wind changes, some people build walls and some people build windmills." Buttigieg, a former Rhodes scholar and Afghanistan War veteran who’s nearing the end of his second term as mayor, has faced skepticism over whether he’s experienced enough to win the White House. He’s responded that he has more executive experience than Trump and more military experience than Trump and Vice President Pence put together. Trump appears to be continuing his practice of labeling his political enemies with derogatory nicknames, dubbing Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersSenate competitiveness bill includes B authorization for Bezos space company Sanders wants government to get 'piece' of US semiconductor companies in exchange for aid Poll: 51 percent oppose Sanders-led resolution to block weapons sales to Israel MORE (I-Vt.) "Crazy Bernie" and former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenAmerican held in Russia contracts COVID-19 after denied vaccine Biden defends waiving sanctions against Nord Stream Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE "SleepyCreepy Joe." The former New York real estate mogul effectively wielded his rhetorical put-downs to stand out in a crowded Republican primary field in 2016, eventually winning the party’s nomination.<doc-sep>
President Trump mocked Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg on Friday afternoon, comparing the 37-year-old mayor of South Bend, Ind., to the longtime mascot for Mad magazine. “Alfred E. Neuman cannot become president of the United States,” the president said, referring to the decades-old Mad character in an interview with Politico. BARNEY FRANK PRAISES BUTTIGIEG, SAYS O'ROURKE MAY BE 'REGRETTING THAT HE'S STRAIGHT "We have a young man, Buttigieg. Boot-edge-edge,” Trump said at a rally on Wednesday. “He’ll be great representing us against President Xi of China. That’ll be great. I want to be in that room, I wanna watch that one." Buttigieg, a relative political newcomer, has surprised many political observers by consistently polling ahead of higher-profile Democrats such as Elizabeth Warren, Beto O'Rourke and Kamala Harris. Buttigieg, who has been mayor of South Bend since 2012, is a former Navy Reserve intelligence officer who served in Afghanistan. He's also a Rhodes scholar and one of the first openly gay major-party presidential candidates ever. Fred Karger ran as a Republican in 2012. Although he has been criticized for his lack of executive experience in running for president, Buttigieg still has more experience than Trump had when he won. The mayor has also been criticized for his youthfulness, which may have been part of the president’s dig in reference to the adolescent-looking Neuman. Buttigieg is just two years older than the 35-year-old age requirement to run for president. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP When asked about Trump's insult, Buttigieg claimed he'd never heard of the Neuman character. "I’ll be honest. I had to Google that," Buttigieg said. "I guess it’s just a generational thing. I didn’t get the reference. It's kind of funny, I guess. "But he’s also the president of the United States and I’m surprised he’s not spending more time trying to salvage this China deal,” Buttigieg said in reference to Friday’s trade talks with China.