Donald Trump appeared to close his eyes and lean back to the side Thursday afternoon in the Oval Office during a White House briefing on Beautiful, Clean Coal.
The Oval Office moment drew fresh attention because Trump, who turns 80 next week, spent years branding Joe Biden as “Sleepy Joe” and now faces his own string of public dozing claims. The White House has pushed back on the sleeping claims before, while critics and online viewers say the latest clip fits a months-long pattern.
Highlights
- Trump appeared to close his eyes and lean to the side during a June 4 Oval Office coal briefing.
- The White House has defended Trump, with a spokesperson calling him energetic and accessible.
- Rep. Ted Lieu confronted Marco Rubio a day earlier over videos he said showed Trump sleeping at official events.
The Oval Office coal briefing added fuel to months of questions about Trump's stamina
Image credits: Wikipedia Commons
During the event, Trump sat flanked by Trump administration officials as they discussed coal policy.
The clip shows him lying back and to the side with his eyes shut for what viewers described as more than a normal blink. The Daily Beast described him as appearing to “catch some Zs.”
The White House defended him. Spokesperson Davis Ingle told The Daily Beast, “President Trump is the sharpest, most accessible, and energetic president in American history.”
On May 11, Trump seemed to nod off behind his desk while surrounded by Cabinet members at a maternal health event. A reporter posted a photo of the president seemingly nodding off, prompting Trump's team to fire back: “He was blinking, you absolute moron.” Aaron Rupar wrote, “Trump is about to hit REM sleep on camera in the Oval.”
The coal briefing now joins a list of public moments that critics have used to question the president's stamina. Last year, Trump picked up the nickname “Don Snoreleone” after he appeared to fall asleep during his own military parade.
More clips followed this spring. At the 158th National Memorial Day Observance at Arlington on May 25, footage showed Trump seated next to Vice President JD Vance during remarks by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, with his eyes appearing closed for an extended stretch.
Rubio clashed with a Democratic congressman over Trump's "somnolence" this week
The latest Oval Office clip landed a day after Secretary of State Marco Rubio faced questions from California Rep. Ted Lieu at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing. Lieu played three videos that he said showed Trump sleeping at official events, then accused Rubio of lying to Congress when Rubio denied seeing it.
“You are literally talking about issues of war and peace, and Donald Trump is sleeping right next to you,” Lieu told Rubio. Rubio denied the claim, and the exchange pushed the issue from online mockery into a congressional confrontation.
Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari went further, calling the coal briefing incident part of a pattern that demands action. “Donald Trump fell asleep multiple times in the Oval Office today. AGAIN,” she posted on X. “That’s why I’ve called for the 25th Amendment, and dozens of my colleagues have done the same. Donald Trump is unwell and must be removed from office. It’s a national security crisis.”
Medical commentary added another layer. Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a cardiologist and professor at George Washington University who treated the late Vice President Dick Cheney, told CNN last week that Trump has “severe daytime somnolence.”
Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois and a frequent Trump critic, also weighed in: “He’s so tuckered out. Poor guy works 4 hour days what do you expect???!!”