Shock claim: Trump "off his meds"

Trump's biographer spills how staff refer to the president

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Does the phrase “off his meds” surprise you when it’s applied to the sitting president of the United States?

It probably shouldn’t. But it’s still jarring to hear it said out loud, especially when it’s reportedly coming from inside the White House.

After Donald Trump shared a racist AI-generated video depicting Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as monkeys, a new wave of concern has erupted around Trump’s judgment, mental state, and internal control. If the goal was to calm worries about Trump’s fitness, the opposite has happened.

What’s being reported vs what’s being speculated

It’s important to separate two things here:

One is reporting. The other is speculation.

The reporting comes from Trump biographer Michael Wolff, who says that people inside the White House privately described Trump’s behavior using the phrase “off his meds.” According to Wolff, that language emerged after what he characterized as a Truth Social frenzy, dozens of posts in a short span, capped by the racist Obama video.

The speculation is whether that phrase was meant literally or metaphorically.

Are staffers suggesting Trump is refusing to take medication he is supposed to be taking? Or are they using shorthand to describe behavior they see as erratic, uncontrolled, and beyond what they expected?

That distinction matters, but not in the way many people think.

The video and the panic it triggered

Here’s what we know for sure:

The video was posted to Trump’s Truth Social account. It stayed up for roughly twelve hours. It generated immediate backlash with even some Republicans privately calling it a disaster.

Republicans in competitive districts were suddenly boxed in. They could either defend an overtly racist AI meme or publicly criticize the leader of their party. Neither option is appealing if you’re staring down a close midterm race.

The White House scrambled. First, it was brushed off as a meme. Then the story shifted to a staffer posting it. Then Trump said he did post it but hadn’t watched the video.

Each explanation made things worse. A president who claims total control saying he posts content without watching it is its own political catastrophe.

Why “off his meds” is a problem either way

Whether the phrase was meant literally or figuratively, it’s bad.

If literal, we are talking about possible medical noncompliance by the president of the United States. That is serious, full stop.

If metaphorical, it means staffers and allies are privately describing the president as unstable, unpredictable, and beyond containment. That is also a disaster.

Either way, the story isn’t about diagnosis. It’s about trust. It’s about the people closest to Trump signaling, even if indirectly, that they believe something has gone wrong.

That kind of language was reportedly being used as far back as the campaign. Truth Social functioned as a containment zone. If Trump posted there instead of elsewhere, fewer people would notice.

That logic no longer holds. Truth Social is now Trump’s primary megaphone, and when he posts something extreme, it travels fast.

The line some republicans won’t cross

The Obama video mattered because it crossed a line that even some Republicans do not want to defend publicly.

We don’t know what every Republican privately believes, but we do know what they are willing to say. And many are not willing to stand in front of voters and justify racist AI imagery targeting the Obamas.

With the midterms approaching, vulnerable Republicans are acutely aware of what it means to be forced into defending Trump’s behavior, or explaining why they won’t.

The political question voters are asking

Strip away the “off his meds” phrasing entirely, and the political reality does not change.

Voters are asking a simple question: Is this behavior something I want to vote for or against?

Republicans on the ballot have to decide whether they defend it, condemn it, or stay quiet. Each option carries risk. Defending it alienates swing voters. Condemning it angers the base. Staying quiet makes you look weak or complicit.

Some voters will simply stay home.

That’s the backdrop as we head toward November. And if Republicans lose the House, the Senate, or both, the consequences will be profound.

The speculation may fade, but the damage won’t.

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