OPINION: ‘Commander of Sleep’ strikes again as Trump caught SNOOZING in the Oval Office

Sleepy Joe was one thing, but the ex-president was never actually caught dozing. While Joe Biden may have been sleepy in nature, Donald Trump is quite literally asleep in the Oval Office. The comical president was caught dozing off once again in the Oval Office during a national televised broadcast, and while his cabinet may be full of boring speakers, one would hope that the president has enough wit to feign alertness. Instead, Donny was caught snoozing on June 4, during an event about ‘clean coal' (yes that is an oxymoron but it's not what we're focusing on today).  

During the event, Trump managed to stay awake while he was talking, though he didn't manage to sustain a train of thought more than a few sentences. The address began with Trump bragging about the changes to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on the National Mall. Trump's renovation (that was initially supposed to cost $2 million) ended up costing more than $13 million and went three weeks past schedule. The changes included necessary patching, but Trump also decided to forgo the ‘reflecting' nature of the pool, and paint it bright blue, turning it from an awe-inspiring wonder to an impressive lap pool.

But of course, this address was supposed to be about coal! After Trump rambled on about an impressive list of unrelated topics, interspersed with self-affirmations that would make the corniest TikTok girlie proud. Trump claimed that California's elections were rigged, went on an insulting tangent about transgender athletes, and even managed to touch on his new boy-toy Jackson Dart. Trump insulted wind energy as his segue into coal energy, and claimed once again that coal is the greatest energy source known to man, an opinion he has made well-known since his initial dive into politics. Some may remember the infamous “drill baby drill” comments. It's important to note that oil, gas, and coal companies have injected nearly $100 million into Donald Trump's election campaigns.

Eventually, Trump managed to tell the public what his address was for! The US government is spending $700 million to bail out 13 coal plants across Southern and Midwestern America. After the distracted introduction, Trump turned over the floor to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. Surrounded by senior officials, Trump took to heart the fact that he was no longer tasked with forming sentences. The 79-year-old president, who became the oldest inaugurated president in American history in 2025, leaned back in his chair and started to snooze.

Maybe it was just a catnap, or maybe he was just resting his eyes, but the fact remains that he had his eyes closed and went unresponsive for almost two minutes. Trump nodded his head to a couple of comments during his beauty sleep, but the lolling head and rested eyes betrayed him. Much like your uncle trying to convince the family he's not dozing off after Thanksgiving dinner, Donald Trump was asleep. It's clear that reporters noticed, as mumblings could be heard off camera. Patrick Morrisey, the Governor of West Virginia, appeared to notice as well. The Governor peeked over at Trump's lolling head and resting face and covered his own face with his hands. Whether Morrisey was stroking his thinning hair or lamenting the fact that his president was snoozing on National TV, it seems like the Commander of Sleep is quickly gaining a reputation even among his own allies.

Democrats comment

House Democrats immediately commented on the incident, if not purely to avenge the scorned Joe Biden. The official X account of the Democratic Party immediately posted the clip to social media, stating, “The Commander of Sleep has clocked in for his shift”. The tweet was immediately torn apart by Conservative snowflakes, knee deep in denial that their president is incapable of skipping his afternoon nap. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul actually gave Trump some credit; her office acknowledged the fact that anyone would have a hard time staying awake while listening to Lee Zeldin drone on. Her office tweeted a response immediately, stating, “Sleeping is far better than listening to Lee Zeldin talk”.

As for the White House, it (unsurprisingly) denied the facts of the nationally broadcast program. The official White House Press account retweeted a post from the account Headquarters, calling anyone who believed the story a bunch of ‘mouth-breathers'. In case you're unfamiliar with the term, it has been coined by far-right America as a way of calling Liberals (or anyone who disagrees) stupid. Interestingly enough, the term was coined by the character ‘11' from the Netflix show Stranger Things. You'd think that Eleven, a female character known for her shaved head and untraditional name, would be the last person the far-right would accept, but alas, reason has never been the strength of the MAGA fan club.

While some may think it unpresidential for an official White House account to call fellow Americans ‘dumba** mouth-breathers', the White House's rapid response account frequently uses profane and insulting language when defending Trump's foolish actions. The fact of the matter is, Trump's cognitive decline is on full display, and we are all victims of his actions. The president of the United States can't even stay awake in a room of dozens of reporters while his staff explain how he is spending taxpayer dollars. Donald Trump is blowing through money on ego-driven projects, and he can't even stay awake to look America in the eyes while he screws them.