Donald Trump was asked by a French journalist why unemployment rates are lower in the United States than in France. The US President did not hesitate to respond and immediately threw shade at Emmanuel Macron, saying: “Well maybe we have a better President than you do.” Mr Trump then began to laugh at his own joke as he walked away from the reporter.
President Trump made the comments while visiting the new Louis Vuitton leather workshop in Alvardo, Texas on Thursday.
He toured the facility and spoke with workers, in an attempt to promote new jobs.
The President’s daughter, Ivanka accompanied him on the trip, alongside her husband Jared Kushner.
After arriving at the new facility, Mr Trump addressed a crowd for a ribbon cutting ceremony.
He started by making a joke that the designer brand was well known to him, and said “it cost me a lot of money over the years”.
The President then commended the opening of the site, and said: “This workshop will soon employ 500 of the most highly skilled workers anywhere in the world.
“No one can match the precision and perfection of an American artisan.”
He added: “Every year, Louis Vuitton will pay more than $26million in wages, and that number will increase even higher as the facility doubles to 1,000 workers in a very short period of time.”
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In contrast, France’s unemployment rate stands at 8.5 percent, with the US on just 3.7 percent, as of August 2019.
As a result, the journalist asked Mr Trump: “You have a very low unemployment rate in the US and we have a very high unemployment rate in France — How come?”
The President swiftly responded: “Well maybe we have a better President than you do.”
The two leaders have had a frosty relationship ever since Mr Macron took office in May 2017.
The pair have clashed over climate change, the idea of a European army and nationalist policies, to name a few.
In July, Mr Trump accused the French President of “foolishness” over a digital services tax, and hinted that he would tax French wine in retaliation.