President Donald Trump has revealed his bizarre excuse for being an hour late to an important meeting.
Trump, 80, blamed daylight saving time after arriving an hour late to a meeting with “a big person from a big country” as he went on a rambling rant about why lawmakers need to pass legislation making the time shift permanent.
“What is 99—even 100—percent is people hate changing their clocks all the time,” Trump told Real America’s Voice on Tuesday, referring to polling about making DST permanent.
“I was late. I was an hour late for an appointment, a big one with a big person from a big country. I was an hour late,” he went on. “I walk in. ‘Sir, you’re quite late.’ I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ Oh, it’s, ‘You forgot to spring forward’ or ‘fall back,’ you know? I think, ‘You gotta be kidding.’”
It was not immediately clear which meeting Trump was referring to. The most recent incident of Trump’s tardiness was in June, when he showed up almost an hour late to a meeting with world leaders in France and quipped, “I’m the boss.”
When reached for comment, the White House referred The Daily Beast to a Truth Social post Trump made in May, but did not address questions about the president’s anecdote.
In May, the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 48-1 to advance a measure that would make DST permanent.
“It’s time that people can stop worrying about the ‘Clock,’ not to mention all of the work and money that is spent on this ridiculous, twice yearly production,” Trump said on Truth Social after the vote. “It will also be a very nice WIN for the Republican Party. Take it!”
But Republicans ultimately failed to get it passed. The legislation passed the House but has since stalled in the Senate amid safety concerns for workers who need to commute in dark morning hours.
“It has even an impact on crime. Because when you, you know, allow more light—because criminals sleep late, you know. They do their crime in the evening, so the light gives you—but there are a lot of reasons,” Trump told Real America’s Voice on Tuesday.
“Some people like a little light in the morning. I don’t know why. I’d rather have the light in the afternoon, you know, good for sports, good for crime, good for everything,” he continued.
A February 2026 poll by YouGov found that 64 percent of Americans want to eliminate the need to change clocks twice a year, while 21 percent were unsure and 16 percent were opposed to the idea.
The same survey found that Americans preferred permanent daylight saving time—which produces later sunrises and sunsets—to permanent standard time.
