President Donald Trump has reignited speculation over his health and physical stamina after he engaged in a bizarre interview with CNN conducted over text message over the weekend.
For months, reporters and other observers have noted as Trump’s speech has often been slurred during appearances, pressed the White House on the origins of bruising and heavy makeup to cover it on Trump’s hand, and requested information on his health, only to be rebuffed by the White House.
Now, the 79-year-old commander-in-chief has added to the questions with a written question-and-answer session, purportedly between him and anchor Jake Tapper, who hosted the network’s State of the Union program on Sunday.
Tapper said he’d asked Trump a series of questions about the 20-point peace plan he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveiled last week at the White House — a plan that has been accepted in part by Hamas and is currently the subject of a new round of talks with US and Israeli negotiators in Egypt.
As images of the messages were displayed on screen, Tapper said Trump had replied to a question about what happens if Hamas tries to hold on to power in Gaza by writing: “Total Obliteration.”
Another question on whether South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham is correct to question Hamas’ sincerity because the militant group has not addressed demands that it disarm under the plan, Trump replied: “We will find out. Only time will tell!”
Tapper continued to narrate the visual display of the purported text messages from the president, closing the alleged interview with a question about how Trump believes the now six-day government shutdown will end.
According to Tapper, Trump replied: “Good, we are winning and cutting costs big time!”
The CNN anchor did not explain how he verified that it was the president — not any of his aides — who authored the written responses to his questions.
He also did not explain whether he’d made any effort to speak with the president by phone, something that has become commonplace for reporters covering the second Trump administration because Trump has maintained use of his personal mobile phone since returning to the presidency and frequently uses it to contact reporters directly.
The president’s purported text message exchange with Tapper was also unusual because Trump is not known to be a frequent user of his phone’s text message capacity.
He also famously eschews email and other written forms of communication and during his first term he openly complained when attorneys working for his administration took notes during meetings.
Trump’s unconventional use of text-based communications to purportedly respond to Tapper comes as questions continue to swirl about the state of his health
In July, the president’s physician said in a memorandum that he’d diagnosed Trump with Chronic Veinous Insufficiency after reporters began asking questions about Trump’s noticeably swollen ankles.
During last year’s presidential campaign and since returning to office, Trump has also frequently had visible bruising on one or both hands that has been speculated to be the result of intravenous infusions, but the White House has dismissed such explanations and has said the cause is his frequent hand-shaking.
Trump has also exhibited slurred speech and has had difficulty walking in a straight line in recent weeks, while at the same time he has noticeably cut back on his public appearances.
Last week, he appeared before cameras on Monday alongside Netanyahu when the Israeli leader visited the White House but did not take questions from reporters.
He did not engage with the press again until the weekend, when he briefly spoke to reporters before departing the White House for an appearance in Norfolk, Virginia to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States Navy.
Trump, who during his first term took a lead role in his administration’s messaging efforts, has also taken a back seat to Vice President JD Vance during the ongoing government shutdown.
It was Vance who took questions in the White House briefing room about the state of negotiations on Tuesday, just a day after Trump and First Lady Melania Trump travelled to Vance’s official residence for a private dinner.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Independent.
