President Trump disparaged his own Cabinet meetings in an interview published Monday, saying they are “boring as hell” and can’t wait to get out of them, while denying that he’s lost some of his vigor.
He rejected speculation that he dozes off sometimes.
“It’s boring as hell. I’m going around the room and I’ve got 28 guys — the last one was three and a half hours. I have to sit back and listen and I move my hand so that people will know I’m listening,” Mr. Trump said in an interview with New York Magazine.
“I’m hearing every word and I can’t wait to get out,” the president added.
Mr. Trump’s Cabinet meetings have become famous for their length. The Cabinet meeting in August set a record for Mr. Trump’s longest televised appearance when it ended after 3 hours and 17 minutes.
Videos showed Mr. Trump, 79, appearing to fall asleep during White House events in November and December, fueling speculation about his health.
During a Cabinet meeting in December, Mr. Trump appeared to doze off, struggling to keep his eyes open as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick praised the president’s tariff policies and hailed his Cabinet as the greatest ever assembled.
The president then appeared to blink his eyes slowly as Housing and Urban Development Secretary and, later, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins spoke. A video posted by CNN showed Mr. Trump appeared to close his eyes for 10 to 15 seconds at a time during remarks by Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
At the time, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denied that Mr. Trump had fallen asleep, insisting the president was “listening attentively and running the entire three-hour marathon Cabinet meeting.”
The December meeting was the second time in less than a month that Mr. Trump seemed to fight off sleep during a White House event.
After an Oval Office meeting in November, The Washington Post analyzed multiple video feeds and concluded that Mr. Trump spent almost 20 minutes fighting to keep his eyes open.
In the New York magazine article, several Trump officials hail the president’s health. Secretary of State Marco Rubio described Mr. Trump as “too healthy” and “too active,” while Col. James Jones, who heads the White House’s medical unit, said the president had “perfect” results in an “MRI-like” test.
During the 2024 campaign. Mr. Trump assailed President Biden for falling asleep on the job, even nicknaming him “Sleepy Joe.”
“How do you fall asleep when the cameras are raging?” he said during a September 2024 campaign rally.
The president later told podcaster Andrew Schultz that “you’ll never see me sleeping in front of the camera.”
