There’s another one for the “what would they say if it were Joe Biden?” file.
Per The Daily Beast, Trump suffered what could be described as another “senior moment” on Wednesday, when he hosted Apple CEO Tim Cook at the White House.
At the event, to mark Apple’s reported $100 billion investment in the U.S., the president appeared confused about which other people were standing behind him.
TRUMP: Thanks as well to Scott Bessent and Howard Lutnick, wherever you may be
LUTNICK: I’m right behind you
TRUMP: Oh, there you are pic.twitter.com/MTZPBF85UZ
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 6, 2025
Stay up-to-date with the latest news!
Subscribe and start recieving our daily emails.
“I’d like to welcome to the White House one of the great and most esteemed business leaders and geniuses and innovators anywhere in the world, Apple CEO Tim Cook,” Trump said at the event. “Thanks as well to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for being here, wherever you may be.”
Lutnick then stated, “I’m right behind you.”
“There you are, hey fellas, I missed you,” the president replied.
The Beast noted that it was the second time in recent weeks that Trump appeared to not realize who was in the room with him at a press event, the other event being a veterans event on July 31.
While Trump has regularly bragged about having “aced” cognitive tests, concerns have been regularly raised about his cognitive ability, which is especially clear when old videos surface of a younger Trump speaking much more sharply.
MSNBC pointed out last month that Trump told a nonsensical story about his uncle John Trump, a former professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, having taught Ted Kaczynski, later known as the Unabomber.
“Fifty-one years, whatever. Longest-serving professor in the history of MIT. Three degrees in nuclear, chemical and math. That’s a smart man,” Trump said at the time, adding that his uncle had told him about teaching Kaczynski. “Do you know who Kaczynski was?… There’s very little difference between a madman and a genius.”
At what point can we start talking about the growing signs that Donald Trump appears to be in serious cognitive decline? https://t.co/QLQ8sJu8ou
— Michael A. Cohen (NOT TRUMP’S FORMER FIXER) (@speechboy71) July 19, 2025
Not only is the “longest-serving professor” claim not true, but John Trump could not have taught the future convicted terrorist, because Kaczynski did not attend MIT. Also, John Trump died more than a decade before Kaczynski was caught and revealed as the Unabomber, so he could not have told his nephew a story about teaching him.
“Trump’s Unabomber tale is yet another example of the what can feel like an increasing disconnect from reality,” the MSNBC column says. “Yet, as with so many of Trump’s recent and unsettling statements, too many in the mainstream media seem uninterested in covering the story. Trump’s Unabomber story has received scant coverage, despite reflecting a repeated pattern of confused and exaggerated statements.”
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
