President Donald Trump admits that his Cabinet meetings bore him to the brink of sleep.
Trump, 79, told New York magazine that he finds the marathon suck-up sessions to be “boring as hell,” so he closes his eyes as his room of sycophants shower him with praise.
The president insists he is not actually sleeping. He claims that he moves his hand to signal to his appointees that he is listening even when his face suggests otherwise.,
“I’m going around a room, and I’ve got 28 guys—the last one was three and a half hours,” Trump said of the December meeting. “I have to sit back and listen, and I move my hand so that people will know I’m listening. I’m hearing every word, and I can’t wait to get out.”
A video from Trump’s most recent Cabinet meeting showed him struggling to stay awake as his secretaries heaped praise on him.
Things were even worse the next time he took to the Cabinet room, less than a week later, where cameras captured him hunched forward with his eyes closed during a roundtable event.
Trump’s hands were in his lap as Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins spoke during the Dec. 8 event. He did not keep one hand moving to signal that he was indeed awake and paying attention.
MAGA 2.0’s Cabinet meetings are indeed a hard listen. Opposed to discussing and debating policy, they are filled with secretary after secretary lauding Trump’s every decision—or granting him credit for things he had nothing to do with.
Among the most egregious instances of this came in an August spiel from Rollins, during which she thanked Trump for “saving” college football, despite the White House doing nothing for the sport, and for “taking back” Labor Day “from the Democrats.”
“By the way, we’re all very grateful,” she continued telling Trump. “The country just feels different. It just feels different. There’s such optimism and love.”
Trump’s sleepy spells have not been limited to just Cabinet meetings.
He has also dozed off during press events. Just this month, Trump closed his eyes as he stood behind Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan “Razin” Caine, who was detailing the military’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
A week later, Trump rested his eyes again while surrounded by children during an Oval Office event promoting whole milk.
The Daily Beast has led the way in reporting on Trump’s deteriorating health and obvious signs of cognitive decline dating back to early last year. In addition to his frequent dozing, Trump has also sported bruised hands, severely swollen ankles, and has struggled to walk in a straight line at times.
However, most concerning to critics are the president’s mental lapses, such as his incoherent rambling and factual mix-ups, including his referring to Greenland as Iceland on four occasions during his high-profile address to the World Economic Forum last week.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for additional comment.
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