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By Jenna Sundel and Jenni Fink
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President Donald Trump denied that he fell asleep at recent White House events, instead blaming photographers for capturing him while he's blinking.
Video footage of a recent Cabinet meeting appeared to show him motionless and struggling to stay alert.
Why It Matters
At 79 years old, Trump is the oldest person to take office as president, and questions have emerged about his advancing age. At several events, Trump has appeared to have fallen asleep, being photographed or filmed with his eyes closed while sitting in a chair, raising questions about his health.
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What To Know
Trump told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published on Thursday that he didn't fall asleep. He said he'll close his eyes because it's "very relaxing to me."
“Sometimes they’ll take a picture of me blinking, blinking, and they’ll catch me with the blink," Trump said.
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At a Cabinet meeting last month, Trump appeared to struggle to stay alert. As Cabinet secretaries spoke at the meeting, which lasted more than 90 minutes, Trump sat back in his chair with his eyes drooping and, at times, fully closed. Video showed him motionless at times while others spoke.
In a previous statement to Newsweek, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump was "listening attentively and running the entire three-hour marathon Cabinet meeting."
In the Journal interview, Trump said his health is "perfect."
Trump has difficulty sleeping well at night, the outlet reported, but the president said he had "never been a big sleeper.”
Trump also addressed his previous comments that he underwent an MRI at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in October. He told the Wall Street Journal that it was actually a CT scan. Barbabella told the outlet that the CT scan was done “to definitively rule out any cardiovascular issues” and revealed no abnormalities.
“In retrospect, it’s too bad I took it because it gave them a little ammunition,” Trump said. “I would have been a lot better off if they didn’t, because the fact that I took it said, ‘Oh gee, is something wrong?’ Well, nothing’s wrong.”
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