Camilla Jessen
White House addresses mystery mark on Trump’s hand.
It wasn’t only policy shifts and a lengthy speech that drew attention during Donald Trump’s appearance at the World Economic Forum.
Images from the event showed a visible bruise on the president’s left hand, quickly prompting speculation online.
The White House has now addressed the questions.
Questions online
Photos taken during a signing ceremony in Davos circulated widely, with social media users zeroing in on the dark mark on Trump’s hand.
As theories spread, reporters pressed the White House and the president himself for clarification.
Trump said the injury was accidental.
“I clipped it on the table,” he told CNN aboard Air Force One. “I put a little — what do they call it? — cream on it. But I clipped it.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed that account in comments to Fox News, saying Trump hit his hand on the corner of the signing table.
Medical context
A White House official said the president bruises more easily because he takes a daily aspirin, a routine his doctors have previously disclosed.
The official also stressed that the bruise was new.
“Bruising was not on the President’s hand at the beginning of the event. Pictures from yesterday and this morning clearly show no previous bruising,” the official told Fox.
Not everyone accepted the explanation. “That’s a really odd place for a hand to hit a table while signing something,” one social media user wrote.
Aspirin remarks
Trump has spoken openly about his aspirin use.
Speaking with CNN, he said: “I would say, take aspirin if you like your heart, but don’t take aspirin if you don’t want to have a little bruising.”
“I take the big aspirin, and when you take the big aspirin, they tell you, you bruise,” he added.
In a past interview with The Wall Street Journal, Trump explained: “They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart.”
The bruise renewed attention on Trump’s health, which has been closely watched in recent months. Last fall, the White House confirmed he underwent precautionary imaging at Walter Reed.
In a December memo, White House physician Dr. Sean Barbabella said the results showed “excellent health” and no cardiovascular concerns.
Sources: CNN, Fox News, The Wall Street Journal
