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Trump, who constantly mocked Biden’s slip-ups, gets host Sage Steele’s name wrong at town hall

Not long after getting the moderator’s name wrong, Trump boasted of having ‘aced’ multiple cognitive tests

Kelly Rissman
Monday 21 October 2024 20:47 BST
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Trump bizarrely states he has ‘no cognitive’ and he's not 'that close to 80'

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Donald Trump called the host of his Pennsylvania town hall by the wrong name after months of mocking President Joe Biden for his own gaffes.

Former ESPN host Sage Steele moderated the former president’s town hall in Lancaster, Pennsylvania on Sunday, with the former president making the slip-up almost immediately.

“Thank you very much. Thank you. Let’s have a little fun, Paige, OK?” Trump told Steele.

Donald Trump, speaks alongside moderator Sage Steele during a town hall campaign event at the Lancaster County Convention Center
Donald Trump, speaks alongside moderator Sage Steele during a town hall campaign event at the Lancaster County Convention Center (Getty Images)

The Harris campaign promptly posted the clip of Trump’s slip-up, which has now been seen more than a million times.

If Trump wins he would be the oldest president in US history, a record that has put his mental fitness under the microscope after he frequently questioned Biden’s sharpness during his re-election bid.

He previously claimed Biden “can’t put two sentences together and he’s in charge of nuclear warfare” and sarcastically praised the 81 year-old old Democrat after he mixed up Trump and Kamala Harris, writing “Great job, Joe!”

Biden’s fumbled debate against Trump in June prompted frantic calls for the president to drop his re-election bid over concerns about his age. Now, Trump is fighting that same battle.

“I’m not 80 and I’m not that close to 80,” the 78-year-old presidential candidate told the crowd on Sunday. “We’ve had some of the greatest leaders in world history that are in their 80s.”

Biden slip-ups included calling Zelensky 'Vladimir' at a Nato summit
Biden slip-ups included calling Zelensky 'Vladimir' at a Nato summit (The White House)

He then touted having completed multiple cognitive tests that he “aced.” Trump boasted: “The doctor in one case said: ‘I’ve never seen anybody ace them.’”

The former president then insisted that he has “no cognitive” seconds before suggesting that his 60-year-old Democratic opponent may have mental acuity issues.

Americans will have to rely on his word — however jumbled his phrasing — as Trump refuses to disclose his medical records.

Trump’s remarks came a week after he spent 40 minutes of a town hall swaying while listening to music rather than answering questions.

This is far from the first time that Trump has mixed up people’s names. He has previously confused Biden with Barack Obama and Nikki Haley with Nancy Pelosi.

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