President Joe Biden bumped his head while exiting the Marine One helicopter on Thursday, hours after he fell onstage at the U.S. Air Force Academy's graduation ceremony in Colorado.
In several videos posted to Twitter, Biden can be seen bumping his head on the top of the helicopter's doorframe. The White House press pool report confirmed that the president hit his head but added that he looked "spry" after getting off the helicopter on the South Lawn.
Biden slammed his head on Marine One hours after tripping over his feet at the Air Force graduation yesterday. pic.twitter.com/Qetmcmefof
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) June 2, 2023
The incident comes less than 12 hours after Biden, 80, fell while onstage at the Air Force Academy's graduation event in Colorado Springs.
"Graduates, you made a noble choice to lead a life of service," Biden said during his speech at Thursday's ceremony. "In the years ahead, your airmen and guardians are going to look to you for guidance and inspiration because the world is going to get more confusing. They'll put their trust in you. You, in turn, must strive to always be worthy of their confidence."
After his speech, Biden started to walk offstage but tripped over a sandbag and fell onto the floor of the stage.
"He's fine. There was a sandbag on stage while he was shaking hands," White House Communications Director Ben LaBolt said on Twitter following the incident.
He's fine. There was a sandbag on stage while he was shaking hands. https://t.co/jP4sJiirHh
— Ben LaBolt (@WHCommsDir) June 1, 2023
After hitting his head on the helicopter door, Biden told reporters, "I got sandbagged," referring to his earlier fall.
Newsweek reached out to the White House press office via email for further comment.
Donald Trump responded to Biden's fall in Colorado while delivering a campaign speech to supporters in Iowa.
"Well, I hope he wasn't hurt.... You got to be careful about that, you gotta be careful about that because you don't want that," the former president said. "Even if you got to tiptoe down a ramp."
Trump's remark referenced an occasion in 2020 when he was seen slowly walking down a ramp after delivering a speech at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who recently announced his run for the presidency, also commented on Biden's fall at the Air Force Academy ceremony.
"I don't know if he sustained injuries, but I just want to say that we hope and wish Joe Biden a swift recovery from any injuries he may have sustained," DeSantis said to supporters in New Hampshire on Thursday. "But we also wish the United States of America a swift recovery from the injuries sustained because of Joe Biden and his policies."
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