Donald Trump Sparks Fresh Health Concerns After Struggling to Keep Eyes Open During 'Historic' Oval Office Announcement
Donald Trump appeared to fall asleep during an 'historic' annoucement in Oval Office, sparking fresh health concerns.
Sept. 29 2026, Updated 9:07 a.m. ET
Donald Trump has sparked fresh health concerns after appearing to doze off during an Oval Office announcement.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the president, 80, struggled to keep his eyes open having just confirmed the Essar Group, an Indian conglomerate, would be building a new $15 billion steel plant in eastern Iowa.
Slurred Speech Also Triggered Concern
Trump health is under more scrutiny than ever.
Trump noted that this plant would be the "largest ever in U.S. history."
However, just as Energy Secretary Chris Wright began explaining the administration’s industrialisation plans and its new partnership with Mesabi Metallics, Trump's eyes appeared to close, and his head dropped forward.
Even as Rewant Ruia, the chairman of Mesabi, expressed his excitement about the project, Trump kept his eyes closed and his neck slack. As Ruia spoke, Trump angled his face toward the executive, but his eyelids continued to flutter open and closed.
The commander-in-chief’s speech also, at times, sounded slurred and he viewers also noticed how he kept jumping from one thought to another without any connection.
Form For Dozing Off
The president was accused of falling asleep during a 9/11 memorial.
For example, he spoke of "the best economy we've ever had" before turning to insults aimed at "communist lunatic socialists" and then about "best murders." He later clarified that murder rates are down across the country.
It’s not the first time Trump has been accused of falling asleep on duty.
Earlier this month, the president appeared to struggle to stay awake during a 9/11 memorial ceremony at the Pentagon while names of the victims were read aloud.
He was also widely mocked for appearing to fall asleep during Lindsey Graham's funeral in July, as well as during game three of the NBA Finals between New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs at Madison Square Garden a month earlier.
'Severe Daytime Somnolence'
CNN medical analyst Dr. Jonathan Reiner says Trump's napping is worrying.
Speaking in May, CNN medical analyst Dr. Jonathan Reiner claimed the president was suffering from "severe daytime somnolence."
He said: "He falls asleep very often. He’s fallen asleep in the Oval Office on multiple occasions with people talking to him, in the cabinet room…And chronic insomnia is a severe illness.
"It can result in an increase in risk of dementia."
At the time, a White House spokesperson responded by saying: "President Trump is the sharpest, most accessible, and energetic president in American history and any so-called medical professionals engaging in armchair diagnosis or false speculation for political purposes are clearly breaking the Hippocratic Oath they've sworn to."
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The president insists he's in 'perfect' health.
Trump himself has insisted that he is in "perfect" health.
Following his "six-month physical" in May he proclaimed on Truth Social that "everything" had "checked out PERFECTLY" during the checkup.
The medical exam was Trump’s third publicly disclosed checkup with his U.S. Navy physician, Dr. Sean Barbabella, since October 2025 — and his fourth since returning to the White House last January.
