Donald Trump, 79, has finally admitted why he descends Air Force One stairs at a glacial pace—and naturally, he’s blaming Joe Biden for it.
Appearing on Dan Bongino’s relaunched podcast, the president explained his cautious approach by pointing to Biden’s infamous triple-stumble on the Air Force One steps back in March 2021. “Ever noticed how slowly I am these days? Nice and slowly, I’m not looking to set any records,” Trump said. “You don’t wanna go down. Could happen, could happen. But it can’t happen three times in one shot, OK?”
THE DETAILS: Trump has been clinging white-knuckled to the Air Force One banisters for the past year, descending at what can only be described as a snail’s pace. His bruised hands and swollen ankles have sparked plenty of speculation about his health—conjecture the White House has consistently brushed off.
But on Bongino’s show, Trump seemed to acknowledge the reality of his physical limitations while simultaneously deflecting blame. “I gotta be very careful going in,” he admitted. “You know, those stairs are very slippery.”
In a rare almost-compliment to his predecessor, Trump said of Biden’s 2021 triple-trip: “It’s probably the only thing I respected and yet it didn’t look elegant at all.” He added that he was “impressed” with Biden’s ability to keep going without actually falling flat. High praise from a guy who once mercilessly mocked Biden’s every stumble.
OF COURSE: This isn’t the first time Trump has publicly obsessed over stairs. At the Navy’s 250th anniversary celebration last October, he told the crowd: “We had a horrible, horrible president who had no clue what the hell was happening. The chances of him walking down those stairs successfully were not good. And I have to be careful because one day I’m gonna probably fall.”
His personal mantra, apparently: “Walk down the steps nice and slowly.”
Meanwhile, Trump was filmed last July stumbling on the stairs going up to Air Force One—proving that gravity works both ways.
ZOOM OUT: The Bongino podcast appearance itself was notable. The former FBI deputy director—who earned his pre-government reputation peddling conspiracy theories—resigned from his Trump administration post in December after just 10 months. He’s now back to podcasting, declaring himself “the podfather” returning to “take back this movement.”
Trump praised Bongino’s FBI tenure but suggested he might be more valuable behind a microphone: “Very few people can do what you do, and your voice is a very important one.”
Bongino, for his part, used his return to attack “grifters,” “dips–ts,” and “bums” he claims have “hijacked” the MAGA movement, while telling critics to “plant a big wet one on my a–.”
WHY IT MATTERS: Trump spent years weaponizing Biden’s age and physical frailty as evidence of cognitive decline and unfitness for office. Now, at 79, he’s the one gripping handrails with visible effort, shuffling carefully down airplane steps, and publicly admitting he expects to fall eventually. The projection, as always, was coming from inside the house.