President Donald Trump’s work habits and health have once again become the subject of national debate, as recent reports and video clips offer sharply contrasting narratives about his stamina, sleep patterns, and fitness for office. While the White House has released detailed Oval Office logs to counter claims of fatigue and declining energy, viral footage and data-driven analyses have painted a more complicated picture of the 79-year-old president’s daily routine.
According to The New York Post, the White House made the unusual move of sharing private Oval Office logs spanning ten weekdays between November 12 and November 25, 2025. These documents, previously unpublished, were intended to refute a New York Times article that suggested Trump’s public schedule was growing shorter and that there were “signs of fatigue.” The logs revealed that Trump worked up to 12-hour days and averaged roughly 50-hour work weeks, not counting any weekend duties. The records included a flurry of meetings, phone calls, and late-night activities, with some days stretching well past 10 p.m.
For instance, on November 12, Trump’s schedule began with a 10:30 a.m. staff meeting and didn’t wind down until after a 10:40 p.m. encounter with a corporate executive. That same day, he signed a bill to end a 43-day government shutdown, held 32 meetings and calls—including with Vice President JD Vance, Staff Secretary Will Scharf, and several lawmakers—and capped the evening with a dinner alongside Wall Street CEOs. The following two days were similarly packed: November 13 featured 17 meetings and calls over eight and a half hours, while November 14 started with four early-morning phone calls to foreign heads of state and included 18 additional meetings and interviews.
Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, speaking to The Post, was effusive in her praise: “The more that’s going on, the higher his level of function.” She described Trump as drawing energy from his work and from interacting with others, insisting that “nobody could possibly keep up with him” during foreign trips. Wiles recounted, “There is a bed in his cabin on Air Force One and I don’t think it has ever been used.”
Trump’s international travel schedule in late 2025 underscored this frenetic pace. In late October, he visited Qatar, Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea in a whirlwind five-day tour. After a grueling 23-hour flight, he was seen dancing with native performers on the tarmac in Malaysia—a moment captured by the Associated Press. He then jetted from a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea straight back to Washington, where he handed out Halloween candy on the White House lawn the same day.
However, not all observers are convinced by the White House’s narrative of boundless energy. On December 2, video footage from a Cabinet meeting showed Trump appearing to struggle to stay awake, his eyes closed for an extended period. Just weeks earlier, on November 6, he spent nearly 20 minutes battling drowsiness in the Oval Office, according to multiple news outlets. These incidents, along with other occasions throughout the year where Trump was seen with his eyes closed during official events, have fueled a wave of social media memes and nicknames such as “Dozy Don” and “Sleepy Don.”
Adding another layer to the story, a 2020 study analyzed Trump’s sleep patterns by tracking the timing of his late-night social media posts. The research found a significant uptick in activity between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. compared to early 2017, suggesting that he was sleeping less as his presidency progressed. Trump typically wakes around 6 a.m., but his increasing late-night online activity appeared to correlate with shorter periods of sleep, as well as notable changes in his mood and communication style the following day. Specifically, text analysis of his speeches and interviews showed that after these late nights, Trump was almost three times more likely to sound angry, and betting markets moved slightly in favor of his political opponents.
Despite the mounting questions about sleep adequacy, Trump has consistently downplayed any concerns. He has openly criticized former President Joe Biden for “sleeping all the time,” telling reporters in November, “I’m not a sleeper.” Trump claims to sleep only four to five hours per night, a pattern his doctors have said is normal for him. They point to his heart health, which they claim matches that of a 65-year-old. Still, most medical experts—including the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—recommend that adults over 65 get at least seven to eight hours of sleep each night. Experts warn that chronic sleep deprivation can impair judgment, mood, and overall health, regardless of individual resilience.
The public back-and-forth over Trump’s health has prompted pointed exchanges between the White House and the press. The New York Times article that triggered the release of the internal logs noted that Trump’s official public schedule showed later start times and shorter days than in his first term, with most events beginning in the afternoon. The Times reported, “Trump still regularly comes down to the Oval Office after 11 a.m., according to a person familiar with his schedule.” The White House, however, argued that the public schedule failed to capture the full extent of his work, including early meetings, private phone calls, and after-hours social media activity.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has been especially vocal in defending the president. She told The Post, “The truth is President Trump never stops working, and his private schedule, Truth Social posts, and around-the-clock engagement on every issue proves just that.” Leavitt also blasted the Times for what she called a “cobbled together half-baked data to push a narrative that President Trump, who is clearly sharp as a tack, is somehow unfit to be president.” In a separate statement quoted by the New York Times, Leavitt contrasted Trump’s openness with the Biden administration: “Unlike the Biden White House, which covered up Joe Biden’s cognitive decline and hid him from the press, President Trump and his entire team have been open and transparent about the president’s health, which remains exceptional.”
The New York Times has stood by its reporting, asserting, “The Times’s reporting is accurate and built on first hand reporting of the facts. Name-calling and personal insults don’t change that, nor will our journalists hesitate to cover this administration in the face of intimidation tactics like this.” The paper’s spokesperson added, “Katie’s reporting on President Biden was just as unflinching as it has been on President Trump, despite cherry-picked headlines attempting to prove something that simply isn’t true.”
As the debate rages on, Trump’s supporters continue to tout his relentless work ethic and resilience, while critics point to the mounting evidence of fatigue and the risks of chronic sleep deprivation. The president himself remains defiant, insisting, “I am sharper than I was 25 years ago,” even as the cameras and analysts keep a watchful eye.
The question of presidential stamina, always a political lightning rod, is now more visible than ever—played out in official logs, viral videos, and the daily churn of American politics.
