Politics

Trump, 79, Masks Bruising on Both Hands Ahead of His Big Trip

BRACING FOR A BIG HANDSHAKE

The president’s mitts were slathered as per usual.

President Donald Trump shakes hands with Head Coach Curt Cignetti during an event to celebrate the 2026 Football National Champion Indiana Hoosiers football team on the South Lawn of the White House on May 11, 2026 in Washington, DC.
The Daily Beast/Reuters

President Donald Trump splotched makeup on his hands once again ahead of his upcoming diplomatic trip to China.

Throughout his public events on Monday, Trump, 79, was spotted with foundation applied to his frequently bruised hands.

Both the president’s dominant right hand and non-dominant left—his “good” hand—were slathered in concealer as he led a maternal healthcare event in the Oval Office and a celebration of NCAA champion footballers, the Indiana Hoosiers.

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The makeup on Trump's right hand looked scaly on Monday. Kylie Cooper/REUTERS
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The president has a big handshake coming up with Xi Jinping. Kylie Cooper/REUTERS

The president’s right hand featured a textured beige coat that looked scaly in the sunlight, while his left displayed a dark oval spot toward his thumb.

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The president's left hand had a dark mark of foundation on it. Evelyn Hockstein/REUTERS
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Head Coach Curt Cignetti during an event to celebrate the 2026 Football National Champion Indiana Hoosiers football team on the South Lawn of the White House on May 11, 2026 in Washington, DC.
It's unclear what caused the bruising on the president's non-shaking hand. The Daily Beast/Reuters

Reached for comment on the president’s bruised hands, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told the Daily Beast in a frequently recycled statement: “President Trump is the sharpest, most accessible, and energetic president in American history. The President is a man of the people and he meets more Americans and shakes their hands on a daily basis than any other President in history. President Trump’s commitment is unwavering and he proves that every single day.”

Trump’s bruised hands are often slathered in makeup to mask the discoloration. The White House has attributed the president’s bruised hands to “frequent handshaking”—although Trump’s non-dominant left hand is often bruised, too—and his high-dose aspirin regimen.

The near-octogenarian president is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week amid his war with Iran, flying roughly 14 hours to arrive in Beijing on Wednesday night. Trump last met with Xi in South Korea in October, where they agreed to pause an escalating trade war that had been kicked off by Trump’s tariffs.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping react as they hold a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Busan, South Korea, October 30, 2025.
Trump last met Xi in South Korea in October. Evelyn Hockstein/REUTERS

“I am very much looking forward to my trip to China, an amazing Country, with a Leader, President Xi, respected by all,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday. “Great things will happen for both Countries!”

During the maternal healthcare event on Monday, the geriatric president appeared to fall asleep at the Resolute Desk, with cameras capturing him as he jerked awake while Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ranted about a supposed “fertility crisis.”

The Daily Beast has extensively chronicled the president’s various physical and mental ailments throughout his second administration, including his swollen cankles, his surprise neck rash, his bouts of confusion, his trouble reading, and his slurred speech.