Stephen King said in an interview that he expects some supporters of former President Donald Trump will one day deny having voted for him, and the White House responded by dismissing the remark as the work of a fiction writer.
King, the 77-year-old Maine native and author of novels including "Carrie," told The Sunday Times that he expects a future in which some people who helped elect Trump will disavow their votes. "I think a lot of people are going to say, 'Well, I never voted for Trump,'" King said, according to the newspaper.
In the interview, King used a sports analogy to illustrate his point, referencing the often-repeated story of Bobby Thomson's baseball home run and how recollections can grow over time. "There's a story about the home run that was heard around the world," King said. "There are… tens of thousands of people who will say, 'I saw Bobby Thomson hit that home run,' and there were only, like, 5,000 people in the stands that day. So I think the opposite is true [with Trump]. Twenty or 30 years down the line, when I'll be dead and you'll be old, I think a lot of people are going to say, 'Well, I never voted for Trump.'"
The White House responded through spokeswoman Abigail Jackson, who told Fox News that King's comments reflected his career as a novelist. "Since Stephen has spent so long writing fiction, it's understandable that he'd have no grasp on reality," Jackson said.
King has been an outspoken critic of Trump for years, using interviews and social media to voice opposition to the former president's policies and rhetoric. The recent remarks were delivered in the context of broader public debate over Trump's presidency and his continued prominence in American politics.
The back-and-forth comes as political discourse remains polarized, with supporters and opponents of Trump continuing to contest narratives about the 2020 and 2024 elections and the shape of the conservative movement. The exchange between a high-profile cultural figure and the White House highlights the persistent intersection of celebrity commentary and political response in the United States.
Neither King nor the White House offered further comment beyond the published interview and the spokeswoman's statement. The remarks join a long-running pattern of public criticism by authors and entertainers met with swift rebuttals from White House spokespeople and allies.