Donald Trump Sparks Fresh Dementia Concerns After Mistaking Karoline Leavitt for Kellyanne Conway
Donald Trump confused Kellyanne Conway (left) for Karoline Leavitt (right)
March 13 2026, Published 1:26 p.m. ET
Donald Trump has sparked new fears for his mental health, after mistaking Karoline Leavitt for blonde doppelganger Kellyanne Conway, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The president repeatedly called out former senior counselor Conway for a shout-out when he actually meant to heap praise on his press secretary, Leavitt.
Kellyanne Vs Karoline
Trump heaped praise on Conway, who hasn't worked for him since 2020.
The mix-up came as Trump gushed over his female staffers at an event for Women's History Month. As part of his speech, Trump meant to thank Leavitt but kept calling her "Conway" over and over.
"And of course, Kellyanne Conway, has anyone ever heard of her?" the beaming president asked his guests. "She's fantastic. She's in there fighting.
"A friend of mine said, 'You know that Kellyanne, I admire the way she goes in there and she screams at those people' – meaning the media, because this is a man who doesn't do very well with the media, it's just one of those things.
"But thank you, Kellyanne."
'Dementia' Concerns Run Wild
He meant Karoline Leavitt.
Conway served Trump from 2017 to 2020, before joining Fox News as a contributor. She also operates her own consulting firm providing strategic advice, data analytics, and media training to corporate and political clients. Leavitt has served as the press secretary for Trump's second term since 2025.
The snafu was shared online, where critics were openly concerned, especially in light of heightened tensions overseas.
"This is the mental state of a man who has plunged us into a foreign war with no plan or end in sight," one person tweeted, as another stressed: "This is the man who is leading our military."
Others wondered what the president was thinking – if anything.
"Trump has straight-up dementia! JFC, it's becoming increasingly obvious in so many different ways," one person commented.
Another added: "The dementia is quite progressed when they don't catch their slip-ups and repeat it more than once with still no awareness."
Still, a third noted: "When people start mixing up details of people from their past, these are telltale signs that they're in the early stages of dementia."
Where's Your Daddy?
Trump made a similar blunder just days earlier.
The confusion comes on the heels of another lapse, as he confused his own father's birthplace during a photo opportunity in the Oval Office with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
As Trump took questions from reporters on the war with Iran, he claimed his father was born in Germany.
Making a gesture toward Merz, Trump said, "My father was born (there)."
"He knows all about my father. My father was born there," he continued. "So, you know, there are places that you sort of automatically very, very feel warmly about."
Frederick Trump Jr., Donald's father, was born in the Bronx in New York City – not in Germany. His grandparents were born in the Kingdom of Bavaria, which was part of the German Empire at the time.
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White House Fires Back
The White House has repeatedly defended Trump's mental health.
Last month, the White House fought back when MS NOW host Lawrence O'Donnell slammed the president's record-setting State of the Union address: "You are in raging dementia when you're in the policy section of the speech, like out of control. He's gone."
Angry reps for Trump told Radar in a statement: "President Trump’s sharpness and unmatched energy was on full display last night when he delivered a historic State of the Union address and touted all of the victories he’s delivering on behalf of working families."
"Lawrence O'Donnell is one of the sloppiest and dumbest people who appear on the failing MSDNC airwaves," the statement continued, claiming O'Donnell, who was a writer and producer on The West Wing, is a "total disgrace to his family and should be deeply ashamed of himself."
