President Donald Trump dolled up his swollen hand for his rambling commencement address to the graduating Coast Guard Academy class on Wednesday.
Photos captured Trump, 79, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland after his speech with a thick layer of beige foundation on his right hand.
The president’s often-bruised right hand appeared particularly more puffy than usual, with his fingers looking swollen as well. However, Trump’s makeup job looked much better than when he was in Beijing last week.
Reached for comment about Trump’s swollen hand, 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.”
The White House has attributed the president’s commonly bruised dominant hand to “frequent handshaking” and his high-dose aspirin regimen, although his nondominant left hand—his “good” hand—often appears bruised, too. Trump’s hands are regularly covered in makeup to hide the discoloration.
Trump attributed his daily aspirin intake of 325 milligrams, which is four times the recommended dosage, to his frequent bruising.
He told the Wall Street Journal in January his daily usage of the anti-inflammatory is “good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart.”
During his highly politicized commencement speech to a branch of the U.S. military, the near-octogenarian stumbled over his words, slurring his speech in an effort to pronounce simple words.
“Our national slengtheses is back,” he told the graduates in New London, Connecticut, trying to say the word “strength.”
“We are a confident country again. We have confidence is back,” the president added.
The president’s rambling about left-wing “lunatics” and encouragement to “never stop pushing forward” turned incoherent when he set his sights on the future.
“Things will happen, and I believe, for the best, hopefully for the best, but I believe for the best. But things will happen that you can’t even imagine,” Trump said. “And it’s gonna be very exciting, but the way that’s going to happen is through thinking big.”
“Nothing great was ever built. Think of that,” he continued, pausing for a moment. “Nothing great was ever built without the word momentum at your side. In times of your life, you’ll have momentum. That’s the time you go forward.”
The Daily Beast has exhaustively cataloged the president’s laundry list of physical and mental ailments, from his swollen cankles and surprise neck rash, to his bouts of confusion and public sleeping fits.
