President Donald Trump’s latest health flap has taken on an eerie new twist, with some online pointing to a royal comparison that only fuels further concern.
Over the past week, close-ups of Trump’s hand covered in makeup but still showing a dark bruise have drawn heavy scrutiny.
The images are now being set against photos of Queen Elizabeth II’s discolored hand in the final days before her death, a side-by-side that’s racing across social media and stirring speculation about what the mark might mean for the president.
The latest wave of concern kicked off on Aug. 22. Viral photos showed Trump’s right hand smeared with heavy makeup several shades lighter than his skin tone while he was visiting the People’s Museum at the Kennedy Center. He must have noticed the makeup gaffe because by the time he returned to the Oval Office at the end of a busy day, he conspicuously covered up the hand that was caked in concealer.
By the next day, new images emerged to show bruising on both his hands. Those photos also went viral across social media. News that likely made its way back to the internet-loving President.
On Tuesday, Aug. 25 Trump was talking about the “dirty” condition of Biden’s Oval Office and the money he dropped to redecorate it in gold. He was noticeably cupping his left hand over his right. Releasing for only brief moments before covering it back again.
Then, on Aug. 25, a blurry still from a video was posted on X but soon higher quality photos emerged showing what many speculate is a bruised or infected IV port, fueling suspicions that something more is happening than discoloration from “vigorous handshaking” as Karoline Leaviitt claimed in a White House memo in July.
“That looks really bad. Looks like an infected IV port,” one person conjectured in the comments, while others fueled rumors of “frequent blood draws” for various mystery ailments.
Others chalk it up to normal bruising as one’s skin becomes thinner with age.
“It’s an old man bruise – my 84-year-old father has them all over his arms,” chimed in one. While others joked that “Someone forgot to call in his hand make-up artist today.”
But others did some digging and found photos of Queen Elizabeth’s bruised hands when she last seen in public three years ago Tuesday, Sept. 6. in Scotland. It was just two days before her death that cameras captured the monarch’s hand looking deeply purple, TODAY reported. Doctors at the time suggested the discoloration could have been from blood thinners or an IV line, while cautioning against reading too much into a single symptom.
On X, the comparisons kept spreading. “Notice anything familiar? That’s Trump’s hand on the left in a recent photo and Queen Elizabeth’s hand on the right in the last photograph before she died,” one user wrote alongside the viral split-screen.
Another commenter pushed back on the White House explanation: “MAGA tryna say it’s from shaking hands… so he’s been shaking with BOTH? I see it on both hands.”
The White House, however, is sticking to the script and doubling down on the handshake theory. Press Secretary Leavitt stated on Friday.
“President Trump 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. His commitment is unwavering and he proves that every single day,” she stated.
The most recent bruise photo comes on the heels of yet another concerning incident. On Saturday, Trump was spotted dragging his leg in a moment that is being scrutinized online.
The president was hitting the links at Trump National Golf Course in Virginia with former Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens and his son Kacy when he was filmed struggling to walk in a straight line and appears to drag his right leg behind him. The armchair doctors came out of the woodwork to share their theories.
View on Threads
“Looks like he has an AFO (Ankle Foot Orthotic) on the right leg,” wrote one on Threads. “Is that a residual effect of a stroke?” asked another. Some speculated that he had a brace on his leg, while others attributed the drag to a “lumbering, unbalanced gait.”
But there’s one thing most can agree on: “If this were Biden, FOX would be screeching about this 24/7.”
