Videos raise questions about president’s health
President Donald Trump faced new questions about his health Sunday, after videos emerged of him gingerly walking down a ramp at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and having trouble bringing a glass of water to his mouth during a speech there.
Trump, who turned 74 Sunday, was recorded hesitantly descending the ramp after he delivered an address to graduating cadets Saturday at the New York-based academy. Trump sped up slightly for the final three steps.
Another video circulated of Trump taking a sip of water from a glass tucked inside his lectern on the dais at West Point. He held the glass with his right hand and brought it to his mouth, but appeared to have trouble lifting his arm farther. He used his left hand to push the bottom of the glass so it reached his lips.
Trump tweeted defensively late Saturday and offered a description that did not match the visuals.
“The ramp that I descended after my West Point Commencement speech was very long & steep, had no handrail and, most importantly, was very slippery,” Trump wrote. “The last thing I was going to do is ‘fall’ for the Fake News to have fun with. Final ten feet I ran down to level ground. Momentum!”
There was no evidence the ramp was slippery.
The videos again raised questions about the health of Trump, whose advisers have never fully explained his visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in November, saying only that it was intended to get a jump on his physical.
The White House doctor released a memo this month that provided little information beyond blood pressure (normal) and a description of his course of hydroxychloroquine as a prophylactic after the president was exposed to two staff members who tested positive for the coronavirus.