'You absolute moron': White House goes nuclear as photos of Trump dozing off during Oval Office event goes viral
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "'You absolute moron': White House goes nuclear as photos of Trump dozing off during Oval Office event goes viral")
US President Donald Trump during a Maternal Healthcare Event in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 11, 2026. Photograph: (AFP)
The White House is pushing back hard after viral footage appeared to show Trump dozing off again, insisting he was simply “blinking.” But with critics calling it a “very long blink,” the episode has quickly become fresh fuel for political mockery. Scroll down.
The White House, in an aggressive post on X, has offered a wild explanation for why US President Donald Trump once again seemed to be dozing off during a public event in the Oval Office on Monday (May 11). "He was blinking, you absolute moron," said White House's Rapid Response handle in reply to a Reuters article about Trump attending the maternal health event. Notably, the White House's snarky reply was made to a post that did not even mention Trump dozing off, but only included a picture of the POTUS with his eyes closed.
'A verrrrrrrrryyyyy long blink'
The White House's response comes as photos and videos of Trump seemingly dozing off while hosting an event on maternal health went viral on social media.
The aggressive response earned White House some sarcastic comments, with Democratic Representative Ted Lieu among others sharing a video of Trump with his eyes closed and the caption, "Dear @RapidResponse47: That is a verrrrrrrrryyyyy long blink". The 17-second video shows Trump with his eyes closed throughout, even as aides standing right beside him talk.
Trump, who regularly refers to his predecessor Joe Biden as "Sleepy Joe", has been caught multiple times in the one year of his second term with his eyes closed during official events.
The latest nodding-off episode comes just a week after he appeared to suffer a bout of fatigue during an Oval Office event announcing the return of the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools. According to reports, similar episodes were observed in April, on multiple occasions in March, as well as in February and January.
‘Commander-in-Sleep’ Trump defends himself
Donald Trump had earlier denied accusations that he falls asleep in public, insisting that photos showing his eyes closed are simply moments of blinking or briefly shutting his eyes to relax. “It’s very relaxing to me,” he said. “Sometimes they’ll take a picture of me blinking, blinking, and they’ll catch me with the blink.” The POTUS had also accepted that he gets little sleep, a claim reinforced by reports highlighting his late-night social media activity and accounts from journalists describing him as staying awake for long stretches even during international trips.
Trending Stories
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
