Democrats challenged Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday over President Trump’s sleeping habits and whether the shoes the president gave him fit well, flummoxing the Cabinet member.
Rep. Ted Lieu, California Democrat, played a clip of Mr. Trump in a Cabinet meeting in which the president’s eyes seemed to be closed, sparking speculation the commander in chief was dozing during an important meeting.
“I’m going to ask you to come clean with the American people and the White House as well: There’s something wrong with Donald Trump’s health or cognitive abilities,” Mr. Lieu said. “The American people deserve the truth.”
Mr. Rubio chafed at the question, saying Mr. Trump is energetic and does not even sleep on foreign plane trips.
“I don’t even know how to respond to that other than to tell you that it’s absurd and ridiculous,” Mr. Rubio said.
The questions were a detour from the main topic of the day: the State Department’s budget request for the fiscal year and the Iran war.
Later, Democratic Rep. Sara Jacobs of California said Mr. Rubio had a loose grasp of the truth, pointing to his recent statement that the war was basically over, despite the deployment of troops from her district in the San Diego area.
She also pointed to Mr. Rubio’s reluctance to say who won the 2020 election during earlier questioning, “just like you couldn’t admit the shoes the president bought you were too big.”
She was referring to viral online photos of Florsheim shoes that Mr. Trump reportedly gave Cabinet officials. Some of the shoes appear to fit poorly, with gaps between the heel and the shoe.
“He gave me some Florsheim shoes,” Mr. Rubio told the committee. “They’re very good, they fit fine. I don’t know what she’s talking about.”
Ms. Jacobs said his shoes looked good on Wednesday, only for Mr. Rubio to wonder how she could see them under the witness desk.
He then caught himself, wondering aloud: “Are you guys kidding me? I mean, is this the Foreign Affairs Committee, or is this like a circus?”
