US President Donald Trump paid tribute to Chuck Norris at the White House on Friday, 20 March 2026, calling the actor and martial arts icon a 'great guy,' a 'tough cookie,' and 'a great supporter,' just hours after Norris' family confirmed the 86-year-old's sudden death. The remarks, brief and unscripted, were delivered as Trump left the building and spoke to a political friendship that had stretched back decades.
The star of 'Walker, Texas Ranger' and films including 'Lone Wolf McQuade', 'Missing in Action', and 'The Delta Force' had long been openly conservative and deeply involved in Republican politics. Trump's closing words, 'A great supporter. Wow, that's too bad.', made plain that the relationship was as much political as personal.
