Donald Trump’s cankles made a brief appearance during the president’s three-day state visit to China this week.
While Trump, 79, managed to keep his lower legs largely hidden throughout the trip, a CNN segment with Jake Tapper and Kaitlan Collins on Friday featured footage of the president sitting next to Chinese President Xi Jinping with his swollen ankles very much visible.
Additional video of the two leaders taking a walk shows Trump appearing to lumber as they walk down a concrete pathway, with Xi pointing out an off-camera feature to his American counterpart.
But if Trump displayed his well-known medical problem, he gushed about Chinese President Xi’s body. Trump told Sean Hannity on Thursday that if someone were making a film featuring a Chinese leader, they wouldn’t have to look beyond the 72-year-old Communist Party chief.
It’s hardly the first time world leaders (like King Charles last week) or American officials have spotted the cankles, which likely occur because he’s suffering from chronic venous insufficiency, according to White House doctors. He was diagnosed with the condition last July.
Trump frequently “man spreads” when seated during meetings, with his clasped hands hanging between his legs, which draws attention. He has said he doesn’t like wearing compression socks, which doctors have encouraged him to use because of the cankles. He turns 80 in a matter of weeks.
Trump last flashed his cankles in early May following what White House officials said was a “dental appointment” in Florida. One observer noted that there’s a dental office on site at the White House.
“There’s been such a lack of candor about the health of the president that even a visit to the dentist raises questions,” CNN medical analyst Jonathan Reiner pointed out on X following the appointment.
“Maybe he just likes this dentist,” Reiner added.
Trump is overdue for a physical as he becomes the oldest president in history. His last physical was over a year ago.
White House spokesperson Davis Ingle has insisted to the Daily Beast: “President Trump is the sharpest, most accessible, and energetic president in modern American history.”
