President Trump appeared to catch some shut-eye during a maternal health event in the Oval Office on May 11 and the internet wasted no time turning it into a viral spectacle.
The American leader, 79, hosted officials and guests that Monday morning to launch “Moms.gov,” a new website encouraging American women to have more children. Notable attendees included Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Senator Katie Britt and Dr. Mehmet Oz.
As speakers addressed the press, Trump sat slumped in his chair with his eyes closed for extended periods. This sleepy-looking form followed him wisecracking to Senator Britt moments earlier not to speak too long because he had a meeting with military generals coming up.
Posts racked up millions of views, sparking heated debates, memes and concern over one side of his face appearing to droop in certain images. Users zoomed in on his still form and joked that he had reached REM sleep on camera. The hashtag #SleepyDon trended hard on platforms like X, flipping Trump’s old “Sleepy Joe” remarks about his predecessor back on him.
Trump once claimed that “you’ll never see me sleeping in front of the camera,” which is now a more debatable notion than it was previously. Critics, such as democrat representative Ted Lieu, raised questions about his age and fitness.
“Trump is not mentally or physically fit to be President of the United States,” said Lieu following the occurrence.
The White House fired back swiftly against the snoozing allegations. When a Reuters photographer shared an image of the president with eyes closed, the official Rapid Response 47 account replied: “He was blinking, you absolute moron.”
The sharp response drew mockery online, as many noted the “blink” seemed unusually lengthy. Nonetheless, officials have consistently maintained that Trump remains in excellent health and fully capable, dismissing the chatter as politically motivated attacks. Trump himself has claimed in the past that closing his eyes simply relaxes him.
Drooping mouth, closed eyes, and a topic he doesn’t actually care about.
TRUMP IS SLEEPING FOR SURE. pic.twitter.com/OoBhzprYLp
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) May 11, 2026
Read more: YouTube bans Iranian channel over Lego-style AI vids critical of Trump
Follow Rowan Dunne on LinkedIn
rowan@mugglehead.com
