President Donald Trump reemerged in the Oval Office on Tuesday to announce a new U.S. Space Command headquarters site and to swat down a flurry of online claims that he was gravely ill-or dead-after six days without a public press avail. The White House said the 79-year-old president remained active over the Labor Day weekend despite the lull, pointing to rounds of golf, a long interview and a torrent of posts on Truth Social.
"It's sort of crazy," Trump told reporters. "A lot of people know I was very active this Labor Day." He added of his social media output: "I did numerous shows and also did a number of Truths, long Truths, I think pretty poignant Truths. I've been very active actually."
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the rumors as partisan noise. "The made-up speculation online is crazy and baseless, and it's clearly being pushed by Democrat activists and left-wing lunatics," Leavitt said, adding that Trump "is perfectly fine and has a tremendous amount of energy."
The Oval Office appearance-his first on-camera Q&A at the White House since an Aug. 26 cabinet meeting that ran 3 hours and 17 minutes-followed a long weekend in which images of hand bruising and prior ankle swelling resurfaced across X, TikTok and Bluesky. Trump had addressed the chatter on Sunday, posting: "NEVER FELT BETTER IN MY LIFE."
Medical explanations from July resurfaced as well. The White House previously said Trump had chronic venous insufficiency; his physician attributed hand discoloration to frequent handshakes and aspirin use. "Chronic venous insufficiency is an incredibly common diagnosis," Dr. Megan Ranney, dean of the Yale School of Public Health, told CNN. "Assuming (Barbabella's) reports are true, it would suggest that President Trump's diagnosis is one that is almost incidental... they've ruled out all of the dangerous things that could've been causing leg swelling."
Trump leaned into the moment Tuesday, needling critics and contrasting his media access with his predecessor's. He also revisited themes he often raises about political opponents. The swirl of speculation, however, highlighted how quickly health narratives can metastasize online-especially for an octogenarian president who typically dominates the daily news cycle.
Some Republicans amplified assurances. Vice President JD Vance said in a recent interview he feels "very confident the president of the United States is in good shape, is going to serve out the remainder of his term and do great things for the American people." He added: "And if, God forbid, there's a terrible tragedy, I can't think of better on-the-job training than what I've gotten over the last 200 days."
Scholars said the episode underscores the speed of modern rumor mills. "What we've seen illustrates the way that everyone is vulnerable to misinformation and online rumors," Brendan Nyhan, a political science professor at Dartmouth University, said, noting that users tend to seize on content that confirms prior beliefs.
Trump's own record on health rhetoric complicated the response. He has mocked Joe Biden's fitness and in 2015 faced scrutiny after his then-physician Harold Bornstein said Trump dictated a letter calling his health "astonishingly excellent." Leavitt on Tuesday again drew contrasts with Biden, saying Trump "has been completely transparent about his health with the public."
The latest talk was fueled by the longest stretch of Trump's presidency without taking public questions-six days-despite appearances at his Virginia golf club and a lengthy interview with the Daily Caller. In July, aides disclosed he'd been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency; earlier photos showed swelling in his legs. The bruise on the back of his hand also drew attention, something aides say has at times bothered the president.
Trump himself has mused publicly about mortality in recent weeks. "I want to try and get to heaven if possible. I hear I'm not doing well. I hear I'm really at the bottom of the totem pole," he told Fox News last month. California Gov. Gavin Newsom used the weekend lull to needle the White House with an Instagram montage set to "I'm a Survivor."
By the numbers / timeline
- 6 days: Longest stretch since taking office without public Q&A, ending Tuesday.
- 3:17: Length (hours:minutes) of Trump's Aug. 26 cabinet meeting with press access.
- 79 years old: Trump's age; he turns 80 next June.
- Search spike: Google interest in Trump rose to about eight times early-week levels Friday into Saturday, per the company.
Ranney cautioned that attention to presidents' health is warranted historically-while warning against rumor-mongering. "This administration has pledged radical transparency, and I think the American public deserves that," she said.
