EXCLUSIVE: Dave Chappelle Reveals 16-Year-Old Daughter’s Brutal Take on Trump — 'First White President I’ve Seen… And They’re Not Good at It, Daddy'
Dave Chappelle relayed his daughter's cutting take about Donald Trump.
May 7 2026, Updated 2:38 p.m. ET
Dave Chappelle revealed his teenage daughter is deeply disturbed by Donald Trump’s presidency after growing up during the Barack Obama years, admitting the political whiplash has warped her outlook on race, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The comedy icon, 52, described how daughter Sanaa, 16, was born a year after Obama became the first Black president, and that Trump, 79, has tainted her view of white Commanders-in-Chief.
Dave Chappelle's Daughter's Hot Take on Donald Trump
Dave Chappelle and daughter Sanaa seen in 2018 at the Toronto International Film Festival
Chapelle made the revelation during an appearance on Michelle Obama's IMO podcast on May 6, as the former first lady took her show on the road to Yellow Springs, Ohio, where the stand-up superstar lives a quiet life outside of the spotlight.
"My kids, maybe my daughter's entire lifetime. I was trying to explain to somebody, I'm like, you know, my daughter is 16, so Donald Trump is like the first white president she's ever seen. And my baby's like, 'No, they're not good at it, daddy,'" the A Star Is Born actor confessed.
Dave Chappelle Uses Comedy to 'Counteract a Numbness' in the World
Dave Chappelle talked about feeling 'emotional pain' from his audiences.
Chapelle went on to bemoan the "insufferable" times today under a Trump presidency.
The Chapelle's Show star said he's been getting a taste of what the public is feeling after playing a series of small club shows in North Hollywood, California, to test out new jokes and "see where I'm at and where people are."
"It's not that my voice is important, but now it's like somewhere the crowd is coming, almost like a church. They're not coming to hear me say anything important, but they're coming to lay down a burden, so to speak," he explained.
While calling the shows "incredibly fun to do," Chapelle shared, "What it tells me about where people are, and remember this is in North Hollywood, so everyone's doing pretty good out there, is that these times are uncertain. That there's an emotional content or pain, or some people come to counteract a numbness, they just wanna laugh so they can feel something."
'It's Insufferable What's Happening'
Dave Chappelle called the times we're living in 'intolerable' under Trump.
"But it's never really been quite like this before, where everyone feels like we're on the precipice of some amazing change, and every day the new cycle is more appalling than the last day, and this doesn't seem like it's ever gonna end," Chapelle complained.
He went on to share how comedy has become so valuable in these "intolerable" times.
"And I would want to remind anybody that's listening to this show, man, that smile that you must have when it hurts to smile is priceless right now," Chapelle noted.
He added without directly naming Trump, "Anything you can do to let each other know you're safe or that you're okay, it means everything right now, because otherwise this is intolerable. It's insufferable what's happening right now."
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Dave Chappelle Begged Trump to 'Do Better' in Second Term
Dave Chappelle has pleaded with Trump to be a unifier and not a divider.
Chappelle infamously declared shortly after the tycoon defeated Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election, "I’m wishing Donald Trump luck. And I’m going to give him a chance."
However, the Grammy winner has since been critical of how Trump “squandered" the opportunity to become a unifying force due to being too "petty."
By the time January 2025 rolled around and Trump was about to embark on his second term, Chappelle begged him to "do better" in an epic Saturday Night Live opening monologue.
"Remember, whether people voted for you or not, they’re all counting on you. Whether they like you or not, they’re all counting on you. The whole world is counting on you," he told the audience.
He then pleaded, "I mean this when I say this — good luck. Please do better next time. Please, all of us, do better next time."
