Some leaders, such as Shinzo Abe and Emmanuel Macron, have been observed to appear unsteady during handshakes with Donald Trump. His handshakes have been described by observers as assertive and firm.
His handshakes, which involve drawing the other person closer in what is thought to be an attempt to demonstrate dominance, have been referred to by the New York Times as “tug-of-war” gestures. The president attempted his well-known handshake with Paraguayan President Santiago Peña on Saturday at the Shields of America Summit at Trump National Doral Miami.
However, history refused to repeat itself when Peña maintained his composure and did not flinch during the handshake. Following the viral moment, Peña and Trump were captured on camera grinning, making the occasion unforgettable.
Who taught Trump this stupid tug of war thing with his handshakes? Fred? Roy Cohn? Epstein? I guess it’s supposed to be some kind of dumb power move. This morning with the President of Paraguay. pic.twitter.com/yce7frWyYz
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) March 7, 2026
Trump addressed a number of urgent issues during the event. The president emphasized the United States’ continued collaboration with countries in Latin America. He concentrated on working with others to combat violent cartels. While addressing several international crises at once, he made sure to reaffirm that the administration is committed to strengthening U.S. foreign policy in the Western Hemisphere.
In order to combat these threats, he urged the regional leaders to take military measures, such as deploying the armed forces. Additionally, the U.S. president said that a similar strategy is required domestically and compared the endeavor to the U.S.-led campaign that defeated Islamic State overseas.
Additionally, he described cartels as an “unacceptable threat” to hemispheric national security. The White House called the event the “Shield of the Americas” summit, highlighting U.S. engagement in the Western Hemisphere. The summit came just two months after Trump executed a high-stakes military operation to capture Venezuela’s then-president, Nicolás Maduro, and bring him and his wife to the United States to face drug conspiracy charges.
This was not the first time Trump and Peña met. In February 2026, Trump welcomed Paraguayan President Peña to a “Board of Peace” gathering. During the event, Trump made some remarks that were not scripted about Peña’s appearance. He said Peña “didn’t like young, handsome men,” but noted that women did, while also accepting it was “nice to be young and handsome.”
Donald Trump tried his famous tug-of-war handshake with the President of Paraguay… but this time it didn’t work.
When you are the President of the United States of America, behaving like this on the world stage is honestly embarrassing.
— Saffron Sniper (@Saffron_Sniper1) March 8, 2026
The incident had fans divided as some praised Peña for handling the handshake with class. A user commented, “Thank you, Paraguay,” one person said.
“He’s such a f’in child. Glad my man from Paraguay made him look stupid,” another said, while one more agreed he “outclassed” Trump.
While some fans appreciated Peña, others aimed at the President, “He’s such a pos,” others called the move “deeply embarrassing” and “weirdo behavior for sure.”
An angry user commented on Reddit saying, “Somebody needs to just yank his arm right out of its socket the next time he tries that petulant s—.” Another user argued, “On the contrary. I think they should wait until he’s pulling as hard as he can and then let go and see if he falls over. “
The 16-second handshake video has now gone viral for its back-and-forth and the way Peña did not give in to Trump’s dominance in the handshake.
