White House speaks out as Donald Trump branded 'unfit to serve' after 'falling asleep' on live TV

We know that being President of the United States must be a stressful job, so getting those all-important 40 winks is crucial to running the country.

Now, President Donald Trump's critics claim he's been caught napping on the job, with the White House jumping to his defense, and some saying he's unfit to serve.

During Joe Biden's presidency, there were many jibes about the president's health, with Donald Trump mocking his predecessor as 'Sleepy Joe'.

Trump already has the record for the oldest person to be inaugurated as president at age 78 years and 7 months for his second term. It's true that Biden was the oldest sitting president at 82 years and 2 months when he left office, meaning Trump will overtake this if he serves until the end of his current term.

There have been plenty of scandalous headlines about Trump's health, previously mentioning his chronic venous insufficiency, and alarm bells sounding when a supposed electrical issue aboard Air Force One led to fears of a medical incident.

Back in 2024, Trump earned the name 'Sleepy Don' when he appeared to doze during his hush-money trial, and since then, there have been numerous times he's been accused of counting sheep while in office.

This includes recent meetings like the inaugural meeting of the peace board, struggling to keep his eyes open during a roundtable on the Memphis Safe Task Force, and accusations that he was napping at an April healthcare affordability event.

The latest scandal involves his seemingly catching Zs while at an event on maternal health. President Trump looked cosy as he was surrounded by Alabama Senator Katie Britt and Dr. Mehmet Oz, the head of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

As images circulated that, admittedly, made it look like Trump was asleep, the White House's Rapid Response 47 X account inadvertently amplified the story by sharing a snap from Reuters photographer Idrees Ali. Just days after the same account clashed with Mark Hamill, it vented: “He was blinking, you absolute moron."

The internet seems to be split, with some reminding us that humans blink, and others joking that it's time to get Trump to bed.

This comes in the aftermath of recent rumbles that Trump’s allies could turn on him and invoke Section 4 of the 25th Amendment due to his social media posts. Of course, if his health also made him unfit to serve, it would be another way to oust the president.

Over on X, there were numerous posts where critics said the POTUS' potential nap would warrant him being unfit to serve.

Former Trump supporter and political activist Trisha Hope wrote: "He's not fit to serve in more ways than one."

Someone else raged: "F**king d****bag @realDonaldTrump can't even stay awake UNFIT TO SERVE!!!"

A third concluded: "Trump is unfit to serve! If Trump is up all night posting to Truth Social and sleeping during the day, those around him are left to do whatever they want to do—to control the show while he naps. Imagine the dysfunction within the White House."

Although seemingly unrelated, the POTUS is confirmed for another check-up at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on May 26. The White House has described it as an annual physical and regular preventive care, coming after an April 2025 exam described him as 'fully fit' to serve as president.