The bruised right hand of U.S. President Donald Trump is visible during a meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung at the Oval Office, at the White House, in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 25, 2025. REUTERS/Brian Snyder
Former CNN chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta has a theory about the bruises that keep showing up on President Donald Trump’s hands. It’s not one the White House is likely to embrace.
Acosta floated it during a conversation with former Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) that aired this week on Walsh’s podcast, “The Social Contract.” The two were talking about Trump’s latest remarks on the campaign trail.
They started with Trump’s repeated comments about the physique of Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio). Walsh, who once rode the Tea Party wave into Congress and later turned against Trump, said the clip worried him more than it amused him.
“I have always had a hard time laughing at Trump because what he does so p----- me off,” Walsh said. “But I listen, Jim, to a clip like that. And all I can think of is 25th Amendment. I mean, I don’t think we realize he is losing his mind day by day.”
Acosta agreed, then turned to Trump’s hands.
“He’s talking about how his hand hurts. I don’t know what he’s doing. Maybe that explains the bruises,” said Acosta, who now hosts “The Jim Acosta Show.”
He followed with a suggestive high school joke about growing “hair on your palms,” then cut himself off.
“Anyway, I don’t want to go down that road,” he said.
Trump, who is 80, has been photographed many times with bruising on the backs of his hands, sometimes covered with makeup. The White House has blamed the marks on frequent handshaking and his daily aspirin. It has also disclosed that he has chronic venous insufficiency, a common condition in older adults that affects circulation in the legs.
Walsh said he worries about Trump’s grip on reality in the final stretch before the midterms.
“We don’t fully know what he’s going to do in these next 15 days,” Walsh said.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Walsh said Trump “doesn’t give a f--- about anything” in his second term.
“I don’t think he’s capable of caring about gas prices, diesel prices, the price of beef, the slowing down of wage growth in this country,” he said. “All he cares about is him, his money, and his f---ing name.”
Report typos and corrections to corrections@rawstory.com.
For customer support contact support@rawstory.com.
