Politics

Trump, 79, Ever So Slowly Descends Air Force One Stairs

1,000-YARD STAIR

The president has yet again displayed a concerning lack of speed as he navigates his way off the plane.

President Donald Trump has been seen once again shakily navigating the stairs as he descends from Air Force One.

The 79-year-old president took each step carefully and kept a hand on the handrail as others travelling with him could be seen slowing their pace behind.

On Friday evening, the presidential plane touched down in Palm Beach, Florida, as Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago from Corpus Christi, Texas, where he had touted oil and gas production and dished out free hamburgers.

US President Donald Trump steps off Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on February 27, 2026. Trump is spending the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP via Getty Images)
The president held the handrail tight as he came down the stairs on Friday. MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

Supporters shared the video online, with almost identical messages shared from three different pro-Trump accounts praising his vitality.

“The man has NOT slowed down!” the comment shared alongside the video of him walking incredibly slowly reads.

Trump is frequently seen descending the stairs of planes at a snail’s pace, which has prompted questions about the aging president’s health.

However, Trump himself has previously clarified that he descends stairs slowly on purpose, to avoid a gaffe like when Joe Biden tripped up the stairs of the aircraft in 2021.

A video of Biden, who was 78 at the time, stumbling up the stairs three times in a single attempt, went viral and has been the subject of mockery from Trump in the past.

“Every day, the guy’s falling down stairs. It’s not our president. We can’t have it,” Trump told military leaders in Virginia in September in a rambling tangent about Biden and Barack Obama.

“I’m very careful, you know, when I walk down stairs. Very careful,” he said.

“Be cool. Be cool when you walk down. But don’t bop down the stairs. It’s the one thing with Obama. I had zero respect for him as a president, but he would bop down those stairs.

“I said, ‘It’s great.’ I don’t want to do it. I guess I could do it. But eventually, bad things are going to happen.”

A month later, Trump announced that he was the “best physical specimen” out of himself and his two predecessors, while simultaneously predicting that he would one day fall down the stairs.

“We had a horrible, horrible president who had no clue what the hell was happening. The chances of him walking down those stairs successfully were not good,” Trump told an audience of Navy sailors.

“And I have to be careful because one day I’m gonna probably fall.”

Questions about the president’s health have been on the rise since his return to office for his second term.

Donald Trump
A bruise is visible on the back of President Donald Trump's right hand. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Trump has frequently been seen with concerning-looking bruising on his hands, which are typically covered in makeup to hide the discoloration.

The president is expected to spend the weekend in Palm Beach before returning to Washington, D.C., on Sunday night.

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