President Trump's slurred words spark media frenzy
Raw video: Media and internet critics pounce after President Trump garbled part of his Jerusalem statement; the White House says the president was suffering from dry mouth.
Press secretary Sarah Sanders shot down speculation that President Trump wears dentures on Thursday after liberal media members and Twitter pundits started a conspiracy theory that fake teeth were responsible for slurred words during his Jerusalem speech on Wednesday.
While Trump would presumably welcome most comparisons to George Washington, having fake teeth is not likely one he'd want to emulate. However, some Trump critics decided – without any evidence – that dentures are something the two men have in common after Trump announced he would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Mediaite’s Lawrence Bonk wrote, “A close Mediaite examination of the video led us to the most likely conclusion: the President’s dentures were slipping out of his mouth, subtly loosening, thus causing the change in speech pattern.”
Bonk added that “this cannot be confirmed” but he is 71 years old, so “it makes a fair amount of sense that he would wear dentures.”
“The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah upped the ante, mocking Trump’s speech pattern and sarcastically inciting viewers to troll the president on Twitter with the hashtag “#DentureDonald.”
“We all know what’s going on here: President Trump is wearing dentures, people. Yeah, that’s what’s going on,” Noah said. “No, this used to happen to my grandfather all the time: His dentures would start falling out, and then he wouldn’t be able to finish his sentence.”
Noah also charged that Trump’s hair and tan are fake, alluding to the fact that his teeth must be fake also.
“And by the way: There’s no shame in having dentures… but there is shame in Donald Trump having dentures, because he’s vain as hell,” Noah said. “Can you imagine how he would feel if people started tweeting #DentureDonald? Don’t do it! I’m just saying, can you imagine how he’d feel? But don’t do it, guys. He’s very sensitive, OK.”
The result was an onslaught of social media vitriol.
Reporters from HuffPost and Chicago Tribune were among the online jokesters, while ABC's "The View" dedicated a segment to the ordeal.
One user tweeted, “Sooo this is interesting. Trump’s dentures are trying to escape his mouth as this speech is ending. Join the club dentures! Unbelievable,” while another said, “We all kept telling Trump to get a grip… never imaging it should be Poligrip.”
APRIL 30, 1789: This Currier and Ives print is a reproduction of the scene at Old City Hall in New York as George Washington took oath of office. Left to Right : in foreground, Alexander Hamilton; Chancellor Livingston who administered the oath; Roger Sherman; secretary Otis of the Senate; Washington; John Adams; Baron Stueben; and General Knox. (AP Photo)
Sanders shot down the rumors, “The president’s throat was dry — nothing more than that.”
Washington only had one real tooth remaining when he was sworn in as the first president, and wore dentures for the remainder of his life.
“Contrary to popular myth, his false teeth were not made of wood but of human and cow teeth as well as elephant and walrus ivory,” according to his estate’s website.
The site also notes that Washington “always treated his dental troubles as a state secret” and was “very self-aware of the impact that ill-fitting dentures had on his appearance.” Considering how many people mocked Trump without any evidence, it’s a good thing social media wasn’t around when Washington ran the country.
Trump will undergo a presidential physical in early 2018 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
“Those records will be released by the doctor following that taking place,” Sanders said.
Trending
Who's making headlines in television, music, movies and more from Hollywood to the Heartland.