U.S. President Donald Trump’s cautious walk down the steps of Air Force One has brought the spotlight onto him more than once. He finally offered up a reason for his walk, and of course, it’s all former President Joe Biden’s fault.
Trump took a dig at Biden during a guest appearance on former FBI deputy director Dan Bongino’s podcast, The Dan Bongino Show.
Highlights
- Donald Trump blames Joe Biden for his cautious, slow descent down Air Force One stairs, referencing Biden's three trips on the steps in 2021.
- On Dan Bongino’s podcast, Trump said he walks slowly and carefully down the stairs to avoid falling like Biden did.
- Trump praised Biden’s quick recovery from his Air Force One stumbles, calling it the ‘only thing I respected’ about him.
Bongino stepped down from his position in December after just 10 months on the job. “The podfather is back,” Bongino said, “and I’m here to take back this movement.”
Trump offered an explanation for his cautious, slow walk down the Air Force One steps
Image credits: Win McNamee/Getty Images
Episode 2443 of the podcast featured Trump talking about Biden as “a guy falling up the stairs, going into an airplane,” referring to him tripping on the Air Force One steps three times in March 2021.
Biden was 78 at the time.
In January, Trump, 79, cautiously exited Air Force One, gripping the handrail as he descended the aircraft stairs at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. His eyes were focused on the red carpet-covered staircase in front of him as he slowly stepped down.
“I gotta be very careful going in,” Trump told Bongino of his entry to Air Force One. “Ever noticed how slowly I am these days? Nice and slowly, I’m not looking to set any records. You don’t wanna go down. Could happen, could happen. But it can’t happen three times in one shot, OK?”
“I don’t think you’ll ever see anything like that, but it could happen, so I’ve got to be a little bit open,” he added.
Trump repeated himself, saying, “You ever watch me? I come down nice and slow. I’m not looking to set any records.”
Trump’s slow speed, along with his bruised hands and swollen ankles, has raised rumors about the declining state of his health.
Trump also took to Bongino’s podcast to praise Biden for the first time. Trump complimented Biden’s quick recovery after tripping three times, saying, “It’s probably the only thing I respected and yet it didn’t look elegant at all.”
Trump said he is cautious because he does not want to risk falling down
Image credits: Barry Williams/Getty Images
“I kept waiting for him [Biden] to fall and he didn’t, so I would rather have other traits than that. And I didn’t even like the look of it. But I was impressed with his, uh, ability to go down the stairs like that,” he added.
Trump continued, talking about the steps of Air Force One. “You know, those stairs are very slippery,” Trump said, before noting that Biden never fell over outright. “To the best of my knowledge, it didn’t happen, so I give him credit.”
Trump has spoken about his fears of the stairs several times before, including at the U.S. Navy’s 250th anniversary celebration in Norfolk last October.
Image credits: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
“We had a horrible, horrible president who had no clue what the hell was happening. The chances of him walking down those stairs successfully were not good,” he said. “And I have to be careful because one day I’m gonna probably fall.”
“I always say, ‘Walk down the steps nice and slowly.’ You ever notice? I don’t have to bop down the stairs. ‘Walk nice and slowly,’” Trump said, talking about his thought process while going down the stairs.
Before joining the FBI last year, Bongino was a right-wing podcaster known for his deep state conspiracy theories.