At a spectacular welcoming ceremony held in his honour in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, Donald Trump closed his eyes and reclined back in his luxurious gold chair. seemed to fall asleep for a moment.
On social media, a video of the 78-year-old president seemingly startling awake a few seconds after someone spoke to him went viral.
One Daily Beast headline read, “Sleepy Trump Caught on Camera Nodding Off at Summit in Saudi,” a clever reference to the groggy nickname that was formerly applied to President Joe Biden. “Trump is having a hard time keeping his eyes open,” as journalist Aaron Rupar wrote on X.
Instead of using the president’s recent disembarkation from Air Force One after a 15-hour flight as an excuse for his apparent exhaustion, critics said it was part of a pattern.
Trump was seen sagging into his chair with his chin pulled to his chest in another widely shared photo taken during a meeting with Syrian ministers and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Wednesday. Furthermore, these observations aren’t simply being made by journalists and bystanders.