WASHINGTON \u2014 The online world had its doubts, but yes, Donald Trump is alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump\u2019s televised appearance<\/a> in the Oval Office on Tuesday doubled as a proof-of-life test for the conspiracy-minded after a week\u2019s worth of speculation that he was gravely ill or worse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The topic \u201c#Trumpdead\u201d had been trending on X. Yet there he was, indisputably among the living and taking swipes at the usual foils: California Gov. Gavin \u201cNewscum,\u201d the \u201cfake news,\u201d mail-in voting and crime in Democratic-run cities. He even worked in a mention of the once-mighty University of Alabama football team\u2019s losing to Florida State on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When did he learn of his demise? a reporter cheekily asked him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump, 79, said he had gotten reports that, because he hadn\u2019t been spotted much in recent days, something was amiss. He hadn’t been seen in public from Tuesday afternoon until Saturday morning, following a more-than-three-hour on-camera Cabinet meeting<\/a>, the longest of his term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI knew they were saying: \u2018Is he OK? How is he feeling? What\u2019s wrong?\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cI was very active this Labor Day\u201d weekend, which included golf outings at his club in northern Virginia and repeated posts on his social media platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump may be a victim of his own ubiquity. He is in front of the cameras so often that when he\u2019s not, people notice and may leap to conclusions that he\u2019s ill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump has jumped to similar conclusions himself when it comes to political opponents. For years, he has relentlessly cast doubt on Joe Biden\u2019s vitality and mental fitness. Since he returned to office, he has depicted Biden as the infirm puppet of controlling aides who used an autopen<\/a> to mask his decline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump renewed the attack Tuesday, saying of Biden: \u201cWe know he wasn\u2019t in the greatest shape.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Feeding the online rumors was a persistent bruise on the back of Trump\u2019s right hand, which at times has appeared to be covered in makeup. In February, the White House said<\/a> the bruise was the result of Trump\u2019s \u201cconstantly working and shaking hands all day every day.\u201d His doctor wrote in July\u2002<\/a>that Trump takes aspirin as part of a “cardiovascular prevention regimen” and that the bruising is a side effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a candidate, Trump benefited from the internet, raising millions online and using social media to spread viral messages. Now, in his second term, he is coping with an online audience that examines every pixel in his photos and is quick with a diagnosis, informed or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump has faced questions about how transparent he has been about his health. His former physician Dr. Harold Bornstein said Trump once dictated a statement<\/a> describing his health as \u201castonishingly excellent,\u201d even though the statement was released under Bornstein\u2019s name<\/a>. In 2019, during a surprise trip to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Trump asked personnel to sign nondisclosure agreements<\/a>, and he initially declined to talk about the reason for the visit, which was later revealed<\/a> as a routine colonoscopy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His vice president may have also fueled questions about Trump\u2019s health. In an interview with USA Today on Aug. 27<\/a>, JD Vance said he feels \u201cvery confident the president of the United States is in good shape, is going to serve out the remainder of his term and do great things for the American people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then Vance added: \u201cAnd if, God forbid, there\u2019s a terrible tragedy, I can\u2019t think of better on-the-job training than what I\u2019ve gotten over the last 200 days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump also referred to his mortality Aug. 19 in an interview on Fox News, telling the channel: \u201cI want to try and get to heaven if possible. I hear I\u2019m not doing well. I hear I\u2019m really at the bottom of the totem pole.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He reiterated his thoughts about the afterlife in a fundraising appeal over the weekend<\/a> as his health drew widespread speculation online. According to search engine data<\/a> from Google, interest in Trump shot up Friday night and into Saturday morning to levels about eight times what they were earlier in the week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The top related search topics on Google in recent days included death, health and Trump\u2019s age, according to the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On social media sites, including TikTok and Bluesky, some of Trump\u2019s critics questioned where he was and suggested he might be sick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn this environment, people will seize on whatever seems to confirm what they suspected, and that\u2019s obviously not a great situation for getting accurate information,\u201d said Brendan Nyhan, a political science professor at Dartmouth University. \u201cWhat we\u2019ve seen illustrates the way that everyone is vulnerable to misinformation and online rumors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Speculation continued Saturday morning when a photographer took a picture of Trump<\/a> in a golf shirt, heading out of the White House with a grandchild. Online, people scrutinized the photo for indications that he might not be well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The next day, Trump posted a photo of himself<\/a> on Truth Social golfing with former NFL coach Jon Gruden, who resigned from the Las Vegas Raiders in 2021 after having sent offensive emails<\/a>, although Trump didn\u2019t say when the photo with Gruden was taken. That prompted a fresh round of questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A White House aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Trump golfed with Gruden on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump directly addressed his health Sunday on Truth Social<\/a>, saying, \u201cNEVER FELT BETTER IN MY LIFE.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n But Monday, rumors swirled anew when images on X<\/a> and elsewhere appeared to show someone throwing a trash bag out of a second-floor White House window, seemingly at odds with usual protocol. The videos got millions of views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What happened remains unclear. The White House aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a contractor tossed out the bags during regular maintenance at the White House while Trump was away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Asked about the images Tuesday, Trump said the windows are sealed, which would contradict that explanation. He said the video was most likely an \u201cAI-generated\u201d fake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This wasn\u2019t the first time the internet throbbed with commentary about Trump\u2019s health. In September 2020, Trump posted on social media a denial that he had suffered \u201ca series of mini-strokes<\/a>\u201d \u2014 without anyone having suggested that he had. And in October 2020, he was diagnosed with Covid-19 in a scare that gripped the government<\/a> two months before the rollout of vaccines. He spent three days<\/a> at Walter Reed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Inside the White House on Tuesday, aides took note of the most recent buzz surrounding Trump\u2019s health but didn\u2019t seem to believe it amounted to much of anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe made-up speculation online is crazy and baseless, and it\u2019s clearly being pushed by Democrat activists and left-wing lunatics,\u201d White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. \u201cPresident Trump is perfectly fine and has a tremendous amount of energy. He has been completely transparent about his health with the public, unlike his predecessor, who went weeks without speaking to the media and spent a third of his presidency sleeping on vacation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Biden spokeswoman declined to comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The kerfuffle seemed to subside after Trump’s appearance Tuesday, but internet conspiracy theories often prove tough to quash. As evening approached, “#Trumpdead” was once again trending on X.<\/p>\n\n\n\n