Donald Trump’s critics say the former president’s strange town hall event on Monday is raising new questions about his health and mental stamina.
The Q&A event was paused when someone in the crowd fainted, then paused again when someone else fainted in the room, which Trump complained was too hot.
“Personally, I enjoy this. We lose weight, you know,” Trump joked. “No, you lose weight. We could do this ― lose 4 or 5 pounds.”
After the second person fainted, Trump decided to ditch the Q&A.
“Let’s not do any more questions. Let’s just listen to music,” he said. “Let’s make it into a music fest. Who the hell wants to hear questions, right?”
He called on his audio team to play “a couple of really beauties,” then stayed on stage for 40 or so minutes more, swaying to the songs, mouthing some of the lyrics and occasionally moving his hands to the music.
He also offered comments about the music from time to time, such as “great song.”
Trump’s decision to cut off the questions at the town hall comes in the wake of him cancelling a “60 Minutes” interview as well as refusing to take part in a second debate with his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris.
It also comes amid a new focus on his health and cognition due to speeches marked by slurred words, confusion over names and location, and lengthy, rambling digressions.
“I saw decline in his skills in ’20 from ’16,” former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, once a Trump insider before turning into a critic, told New York Times columnist Frank Bruni on Sunday. “And you see significant declines still.”
Trump’s critics on X said the former president’s odd appearance at the town-hall style event Monday only adds to those questions: