'Sleepy Donald'? Trump accused of dozing off at Memorial Day event, reigniting age concerns

Issued on: 27/05/2026 - FRANCE24
05:20 min From the show

A viral video appearing to show Donald Trump falling asleep at a Memorial Day ceremony on Monday has sparked outrage online, reigniting rumours about the state of the US president's health. Social media users claimed Trump was dozing off, and furious that it could take place at a ceremony to honour fallen US military personnel. Though the low-quality video is difficult to verify, it has reignited scrutiny about Trump's health.

Social media users claimed Trump's eyes were closed during Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's speech at Arlington National Cemetery, and that he was fighting sleep. They shared the video, saying Trump has "no respect" and prompting renewed mockery over Trump's long-running attacks on former US president Joe Biden as "Sleepy Joe", with users pointing to what they claimed was Trump himself appearing drowsy at a national event.

The viral 30-second video, though, is difficult to verify due to its low quality. It's unclear whether pixels or shadows affect the clip, as Trump's eyes cannot be clearly seen. No full streams of the Memorial Day event depicted the ceremony in 4K, with the placement of the camera at a distance.

Trump has been previously accused of sleeping on the job: last December, during an hours-long cabinet meeting, a video of him with his eyes closed for long periods of time also prompted much debate. Trump himself later commented that he was simply "bored", but not asleep. He was also accused in March of falling asleep at a security roundtable in Memphis, Tennessee, and just this month he faced renewed backlash after a video appeared to show his eyes closed in the Oval Office. The White House, though, pushed back on the rumours online, claiming he was "blinking."

The Arlington video came a day before Trump underwent his fourth publicly disclosed health exam since he returned to office, spending three hours at the Walter Reed Medical Centre for what the White House said was a "preventative medical checkup".

Trump said on Truth Social that everything "checked out perfectly", but fresh rumours about his health are swirling before his 80th birthday next month.

An April survey by Ipsos/Washington Post found that just 40 percent of Americans believe Trump has the mental capacity required to carry out his presidential duties.

VIDEO BY:  Vedika BAHL