Fact Check: Did Donald Trump Fall Asleep During Saudi Arabia Meeting?
Videos of President Donald Trump at a meeting in Saudi Arabia appear to suggest that he fell asleep, though his eyes were only closed for a few seconds.
Trump arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday after a 15-hour flight for a four-day tour of the Middle East. Upon arriving, he was met by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after disembarking from Air Force One before attending a Saudi-U.S. Investment forum.
Speaking during the meeting, the 78-year-old president pledged to lift all sanctions on Syria, calling the relationship between the two countries "more powerful than ever before."
"I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness," Trump said.
The sanctions had been in place for over a decade to put pressure on former President Bashar al-Assad, who was ousted in December.
The two countries also announced a $142bn arms deal and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed promised $600bn of investment in the U.S. This is to include $20bn in artificial intelligence data centers and nearly $5bn in Boeing 737-8 jets.
The Claim
Amid the flurry of announcements, some social media users suggested Trump fell asleep.
Journalist Aaron Rupar wrote on X: "Trump is having a hard time keeping his eyes open in Saudi Arabia."
Campaign group Republicans against Trump reposted a clip from The Daily Show which had shared a video of the president appearing to close his eyes. "Who the hell sleeps in front of the paparazzi?" a Daily Show voice-over said over the video, in a tone that appeared to mimic Trump. "How do you sleep in front of the media? The cameras are rolling and he's asleep."
The Facts
The social media accusations are reminiscent of Trump facing sleeping accusations during his criminal trial for charges of falsifying business documents. At the time, Trump denied these reports. The Trump campaign similarly used to call former President Joe Biden "sleepy Joe" to discredit him and spark concerns about cognitive decline.
While the video appears to show Trump closing his eyes or lowering his gaze, this is only for a few seconds.
Conservative podcaster Kristin Sokoloff posted a longer video showing that Trump only closed his eyes for two seconds.
The Ruling
False.
When viewed in context of longer video clips, it is clear that the President had his eyes open for the majority of the meeting and therefore it is unlikely that he fell asleep.
FACT CHECK BY Kate Plummer
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