After Marco Rubio dismissed suggestions that President Donald Trump had fallen asleep during official meetings, the US’ state secretary was accused of “lying” to a Congressional panel.
Rubio, appearing before the US House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, was questioned by Democratic representative Ted Lieu of California. He used video footage to challenge the secretary’s claims about the US president’s condition.
Lieu plays video clips
Lieu played multiple clips, including footage from a Cabinet meeting and a television news segment discussing a Memorial Day event attended by Trump. Rubio, who was seated beside the president during the Cabinet meeting, was asked whether he had ever seen Trump fall asleep while carrying out official duties.
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“You will see that he is sleeping while you are talking,” Lieu told Rubio before showing a clip in which Trump appeared with his eyes closed and his head lowered as Rubio spoke nearby.
Rubio immediately rejected the claim.
“That’s false,” he said. “I’ve never seen him fall asleep. On the contrary, the guy doesn’t sleep. Which is a big problem, because he calls me at 2 in the morning, he calls me at 5 in the morning, and you know, I like to sleep a little bit.”
Lieu played another clip that he said showed Trump appearing to doze off during a Cabinet meeting.
“You are literally talking about issues of war and peace and Donald Trump is sleeping right next to you,” Lieu said.
Rubio calls allegations ‘ridiculous’
Rubio again disputed the allegation, insisting he had never witnessed Trump fall asleep during a meeting and describing the line of questioning as “ridiculous.”
Lieu argued that the footage raised legitimate concerns about the president’s ability to perform his duties. “Donald Trump’s inability to stay awake on the job shows that there’s something very wrong with his health and cognitive abilities,” Lieu said.
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“I’ve never been at any meeting and the things you’re showing me now, he was not falling asleep,” Rubio replied.
“It’s absurd and ridiculous. [Trump] is a guy that literally doesn’t sleep. He works day and night, long hours every single day. I don’t know if you haven’t seen him in eight days. I saw him yesterday. I didn’t see him today, but yesterday because I was in Congress. The day before, I talked to him at all hours of the day and night. He works inhumane hours, okay? I’ve been on foreign trips with the president where he doesn’t sleep the whole flight and everyone else is sleeping on the plane. He’s wandering in the hallways looking for someone to wake up and talk to,” Rubio said.
After Rubio repeated his denial, Lieu shot back, “Just keep lying, just keep lying.”
Fresh scrutiny over Trump’s health
The exchange comes amid renewed discussion about Trump’s health after questions about his appearance and public schedule in recent weeks.
On social media, political commentator Brian Krassenstein shared a video claiming the president’s face appeared swollen, while Lieu separately alleged that Trump appeared to nod off during the Cabinet meeting. “There is something wrong with his health or cognitive abilities. We are going to get to the bottom of this,” the California congressman said in a clip posted online.
White House says Trump is ‘fully fit’
The White House, though, has maintained that the 79-year-old president remains in good health. A medical summary released following Trump’s recent examination at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center concluded that he remains in “excellent health” and is “fully fit” to carry out his duties.
White House physician Sean Barbabella said Trump demonstrated “strong cardiac, pulmonary, neurological and overall physical function” following evaluations conducted over the past year and consultations with 22 medical specialists.
The report attributed recurring bruising on Trump’s hands to frequent handshaking combined with aspirin use and noted that mild swelling in his lower legs had improved compared with the previous year. Doctors also recommended increased physical activity, weight loss and continued use of low-dose aspirin.