When Trump's Weird Outfit—Meant to Make Him Look Slimmer in Stephen Colbert Interview—Fell Flat

Donald Trump once made an appearance on The Stephen Colbert Show in 2015, while he was leading his first campaign for the White House. Aside from the topics he covered, one aspect of his interview struck out. Fans were quite responsive to the interview — as well as Trump's trademark interview attire. He was wearing his trademark long red tie, but it went down to below his stomach. 

The true reason for the lengthy tie wasn't made public until the publication of former governor of New Jersey Chris Christie's memoir, Let Me Finish. According to his book, Trump seemed to believe that wearing a lengthy tie makes one's physique seem thinner. The Guardian reported that apparently, Trump had also encouraged Christie to wear longer ties to look slimmer when they met during the course of the 2016 presidential campaign.

The online community has been abuzz over Trump's lengthy red tie for what seems like an eternity. There is even an X (formerly Twitter) page devoted to the real estate mogul's ties, complete with all the associated memes. Additionally, one thing that stands out about Trump's tie collection is that most of his ties are in the color red. What's worth noting is that the red tie, which originated in the 1980s with corporate attitudes, is a powerful symbol, according to a 2017 article by Racked.

However, the colors of Trump's ties aren't always the deciding factor. A very Freudian perspective on the length of those ties was also stated by a few publications. The HuffPost also developed their examination of the lengthy 'ties' before Christie's book was released. According to the outlet, the tie (and its length) is clearly associated with the size of the... masculine body. An exceptionally long tie, therefore, would represent a man's wish to project an unnaturally masculine image of himself, as it could be perceived as a phallic symbol. 

On the other hand, if one wants to seem young, a bowtie would be the way to go. After all, little boys often don bow ties when they are initially dressed in more formal attire. The article also included some analysis and said that Trump purposefully adjusted his tie style to make his tie seem longer. This might be done to highlight his lower physique or to hide his larger-than-desired midsection.

Nevertheless, Trump's tie length has been the target of much ridicule during his administration. Some remarks made on X at the time include, "WHY IS TRUMP'S TIE SO LONG? Is that normal? It's really bothering me." Another critic mocked his tie and added, "Trump's tie is a good 6 inches too long. It's touching the chair when he sits down. How does this continue to happen?" One more critique of Trump's fashion added, "As it’s claimed Donald Trump wears long ties to make himself look thinner, experts say not ordering a thousand Big Macs will have the same effect." Yet another reviewer stated, "Trump is not fooling anyone. We all know he wears his ties extra long so he doesn't look fatter than he already does!!!"