Left-wing pundits and influencers claim Trump is dead, call for 25th Amendment after not seeing him for a few days

False rumors were spread online about the purported demise of the president after he was not seen in public for a few days. His lack of appearance came after he and the Cabinet sat and talked for over three hours during a publicized Cabinet meeting earlier this week. Trump was photographed alongside his granddaughter Kai as they headed to the Trump National golf course in Virginia.

The rumors cropped up on Friday after Trump's public schedule was sparse on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, with the president signing executive orders on Thursday and also receiving an intelligence briefing the same day, but the events were closed to the press. Even some political figures played into the false rumors, with Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters claiming that the Cabinet had to invoke the 25th Amendment.

The phrase "Trump is dead" trended on X along with similar rumors on Friday into Saturday.

Some pointed to Vice President JD Vance telling reporters that he would take over for Trump if something were to happen to the president. The question from reporters, however, was hypothetical, not claiming that Trump was actually dead.

Vance said, “Yes, terrible tragedies happen,” Vance responded, when reporters asked if he would be ready if something happened to Trump, per the New York Post. “And if, God forbid, there’s a terrible tragedy, I can’t think of better on-the-job training than what I’ve gotten over the last 200 days.”

At the time, he also emphasized, “I feel very confident the president of the United States is in good shape, is gonna serve out the remainder of his term, and do great things for the American people.”

“He’s got incredible energy, and while most of the people that work around the president of the United States are younger than he is, I think that we find that he actually is the last person who goes to sleep, he’s the last person making phone calls at night, and he’s the first person who wakes up and the first person making phone calls in the morning,” Vance continued.

Rumors surrounding Trump's health have swirled online after he was revealed to have chronic venous insufficiency in his lower legs, a condition that is common in older adults.