Donald Trump has been photographed with a mysterious Band-Aid plastered on the back of his right hand for the second day running.
On Tuesday, Trump, 79, spent a lengthy Cabinet meeting hiding his hands. However when he touched his face at one point, a photograph showed he had two Band-Aids on his right hand. The White House did not respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast at the time.
Then, on Wednesday, Trump held an hour-long White House meeting to announce plans to reverse vehicle fuel-efficiency standards implemented by the Biden administration.
Once again, for most of the meeting, Trump had his hands under his Oval Office desk as loyal members of his administration surrounded him, taking turns speaking.
However, at about 30 minutes into the meeting, Trump raised his hands from under the desk to gesticulate as he embarked on a rant about affordability and the price of eggs and coffee.
That allowed Getty photographer Chip Somodevilla to capture his hand, demonstrating he had downsized to just one Band-Aid by Wednesday.
When contacted on Thursday about the Band-Aid, the White House did not directly address the addition to Trump’s hand, instead sending a pre-prepared response that has been used multiple times in the past.
“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,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. “His commitment is unwavering and he proves that every single day.”
The Trump administration has attributed the ongoing bruising on the president’s right hand to “minor soft tissue irritation” caused by the frequent handshaking as well as his of aspirin, which he takes as “part of a standard cardiovascular prevention regime.”
The president’s right hand has regularly been smothered in flesh-colored make-up to hide that persistent bruising.
The White House has frequently deflected media questions on that omnipresent bruising by referring to a medical report released on July 17, which said the president had been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, meaning the leg veins are not pushing blood back to the heart as they should.
The White House said in July it was a “benign and common condition” usually seen in individuals over 70.
On Monday, after the White House released details of a “preventative” MRI test Trump took during a check-up in October, Leavitt said Trump’s health remains “excellent.”
The presidential Band-Aids became particularly visible when Trump once again raised his claim that “affordability” is a “Democrat hoax.”
“We had the worst inflation in the history of our country and now our prices are coming down and they’re coming down for cars,” Trump said.
He complained that Democrats mention “affordability” without going into specific detail.
“Everything was through the roof,” Trump said in the Oval Office. “Eggs, when I took over, eggs were four times higher than they ever were. We got the prices down to the lowest level. I mean, amazing. You got to watch, they’re great con people.”
“They say ‘This election’s about affordability’ and then they go on to the next subject. It’s a con-job.”
