Donald Trump appeared at the 2024 Republican National Convention to great adulation from the crowd. But online observers noticed that perhaps he wasn't totally excited to be there.
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00:00Donald Trump appeared at the 2024 Republican National Convention to great adulation from
00:05the crowd, but online observers noticed that perhaps he wasn't totally excited to be there.
00:10There's no denying that the 78-year-old former president seized the moment at his July 13
00:16campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, after he was grazed on his right ear by a shooter's bullet.
00:21As Secret Service agents stood him up to remove him from the stage,
00:25he held up a raised fist and repeatedly shouted,
00:28"'Fight!'," drawing cheers from the crowd.
00:36A mix of energy from that moment and sympathy over his injury had pundits certain that the
00:41Republican National Convention in Milwaukee would be another opportunity for Trump to ride
00:45his momentum. And in many ways, it has been. The crowd's reactions to his entrances at the
00:50convention, where he has worn a very visible bandage on his right ear, have been huge. Singer
00:56Lee Greenwood also didn't shy away from talking about the shooting on the first night.
01:01"'He is here tonight to show his courage, his defiance against somebody who tried to kill him.'"
01:08Trump himself, though? Maybe not that into it. As the first night came to a close,
01:12cameras caught him appearing to have trouble keeping his eyes open.
01:16This recalled some of the reports that Trump similarly seemed to have trouble staying awake
01:20during jury selection at his criminal fraud trial in Manhattan in April. A viewer posted to X,
01:26formerly Twitter,
01:27"'Trump now appears to be asleep during the Republican National Convention,
01:32just like he slept through his criminal trial.'"
01:34Footage of Trump appearing to nod off at the RNC has made the rounds on social media,
01:39and has caused some arguments, as these things so often do. One X user,
01:43whose video of the moment has gotten nearly 130,000 likes, wrote,
01:48"'If Trump can't stay awake at his own convention, how is he going to stay awake
01:52for America? I think it's time he should step down and let someone much younger,
01:56and who is not a convicted felon, take his place.'"
01:59That video shows Trump's eyes closing during a speech from Harmeet Dhillon,
02:04former vice chair of the California Republican Party. Dhillon's remarks
02:08included a prayer in the tradition of her Sikh faith. Many in the auditorium closed their eyes
02:13for the prayer. But the video shows Trump's eyes drooping before the prayer began, and his eyes
02:19open during most of the prayer itself, in which Dhillon thanked God for the former president's
02:24life. That said, many of Trump's ardent supporters have made the argument that he wasn't sleeping,
02:29but praying. And in some of the clips that have been shared purporting that Trump was asleep,
02:33he was, in fact, praying. Newsweek points out that one clip posted by one X user, who wrote,
02:39Trump fell asleep at the RNC on the first night. He just got there.
02:44Used footage of the former president during a prayer by Pastor James Remke.
02:48PolitiFact even weighed in, calling the claims in that specific tweet false. Others on X gave
02:54Trump a pass for his heavy eyelids for other reasons, with one saying,
02:58In fairness to Donald, it was really boring.
03:01Trump's behavior on the second night of the convention on Tuesday drew a different criticism,
03:06though some also said the same thing about night one. A lot of online observers thought
03:11the former president looked uncomfortable, with some saying he was grimacing throughout
03:15the proceedings. One wrote,
03:17He looked exhausted and uncomfortable at RNC.
03:20One theory was that the former president was still feeling some pain from the injury to his ear,
03:25with the thought that his bandage may be covering stitches.