The internet thinks Trump doesn’t know the words to 'God Bless America'
-AP.
President Donald Trump’s latest Veterans Day appearance is making waves online, not for his speech or salute, but for what he didn’t sing.
At a solemn ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, Trump stood beside Vice President JD Vance as a military chorus performed Irving Berlin’s classic God Bless America.
Cameras caught the President starting strong with the opening words, God bless America, before falling silent for most of the song.
Instead of continuing, Trump nodded along, occasionally tapping his chest to the beat.
About a minute later, he joined back in for a brief encore, God bless America, my home sweet home, before once again returning to quiet swaying.
🚨JUST NOW: Trump sings the first three words to "God Bless America" and forgets the rest.
Trump is such a f*cking embarassment.
pic.twitter.com/K8beMwTJOuVance, by contrast, appeared to know the lyrics by heart, singing with the crowd as Trump looked on.
The moment quickly went viral on X, where users joked that the president seemed to know only “the title and tagline” of one of America’s best-known patriotic tunes.
“Feels like this should be a job requirement,” one commenter wrote, while another quipped, “At least he remembered the beat.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has been caught stumbling through the song. During a 2018 White House event, he was similarly seen mouthing only a few scattered words before awkwardly bobbing his head as others sang around him. That earlier clip resurfaced soon after the Veterans Day ceremony, fueling another round of memes.
Still, some viewers noted that Trump looked cheerful, saluting veterans and keeping rhythm with the music — even if his lips didn’t move much.
As one viral post summed it up: “Every president forgets a few words sometimes, but only one turns it into choreography.”