President Donald Trump slumped into a waiting limousine after landing in Palm Beach for a Mar-a-Lago weekend on Friday—even as he demanded lawmakers keep at it in Washington, D.C., amid the ongoing government shutdown.
In footage captured by Fox News on Friday night, Trump can be seen slowly making his way off Air Force One. He descends the stairs at a cautious pace and raises his fist after completing the task without incident, before almost collapsing into the seat of his waiting car.
The dark footage shows Trump’s head rolling back, and he appears to sigh as he sits.
Less than two hours before he flew south for the weekend, Trump posted to Truth Social that senators should not leave the capital until they can reopen the government, which has now been closed for 39 days—the longest stretch in American history.
“The United States Senate should not leave town until they have a Deal to end the Democrat Shutdown,” Trump wrote.
“If they can’t reach a Deal, the Republicans should terminate the Filibuster, IMMEDIATELY, and take care of our Great American Workers!”
Speculation about the state of the president’s health has once again made headlines following a difficult week in which Trump has confused dates and names, mixed up facts, and appeared to have nodded off during a press conference at the White House.
California Governor Gavin Newsom branded the president “Dozy Don” and shared footage of his Thursday Oval Office nap on X. Trump appeared to be catching some z’s as his Medicare administrator, Dr. Mehmet Oz, spoke about pharmaceutical pricing.
The Florida getaway began just as the Supreme Court granted the Trump administration’s emergency request to block a lower court’s order to fully fund SNAP benefits—cutting some 42 million Americans off from much-needed food assistance.
Attorney General Pam Bondi celebrated the ruling on social media, describing it as part of Trump’s agenda. Democrat lawmakers, however, branded the decision as an active choice to “starve kids.”
The president’s health has been the subject of sustained interest since the appearance of deep bruising on his right hand emerged at the start of the year, while his ankles have frequently appeared swollen.
In July, the White House revealed that the president had been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a common and manageable condition in older people where blood in the leg veins fails to circulate properly around the body. Just last month, Trump underwent a second “annual” physical, which he later revealed included an MRI scan—a non-routine diagnostic test that is generally ordered to detect a specific condition.
Some medical professionals have suggested that the president’s condition is far more severe than his administration is willing to admit.
Psychologist Dr. John Gartner told The Daily Beast Podcast recently that Trump is currently exhibiting “clinical signs of dementia.”
The president is expected to golf during his weekend visit to Mar-a-Lago. There are no public events on his schedule for Saturday, Nov. 8.
