President Donald Trump deviated from the planned agenda during a White House Hanukkah reception on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, using the event to draw comparisons between his health and that of former Democratic presidents.
After briefly addressing the recent mass shooting at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, which resulted in the deaths of 15 Jewish individuals, Trump moved on to introduce various attendees at the reception. Mentioning Rep. Ronny Jackson prompted an unexpected shift in the event’s focus.
Jackson, a congressman from Texas and former White House physician, served as the impetus for Trump’s health comparisons. Trump noted that Jackson had been the White House doctor for three presidents: George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and himself.
“Ronny was asked, ‘Who’s the healthiest of all? Was it Barack Hussein Obama? Was it Sleepy Joe Biden? Or was it Donald Trump?’ And he said, ‘Trump was by far the healthiest,'” Trump stated. “He was the doctor for all three of us, and he said, ‘Trump was by far the healthiest.’ I love him.”
However, Jackson was never the White House physician for Biden. Jackson served from 2013 to 2018, covering part of Obama’s second term and part of Trump’s first term, before leaving to run for Congress. He assumed his congressional role on January 3, 2021, before Biden’s inauguration on January 20, 2021. Biden’s physician has been Dr. Kevin O’Connor throughout his presidency. While Jackson was the White House physician when Biden was Vice President, he never held that role for President Biden.
Trump then added a caveat to his claim by acknowledging that his comments might rely on Jackson’s opinion. “If he didn’t say that, I would never have talked to him again,” he remarked.
The president’s remarks extended beyond health comparisons as he invited several audience members to the stage for a lengthy session of praise. He then shifted to discussing military support for Israel before briefly returning to Hanukkah acknowledgments. He soon diverted again to discuss efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Jackson’s professional credibility has faced challenges in recent years. In 2018, during his nomination to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee interviewed colleagues who described a hostile work environment and allegations of improper conduct, including dispensing prescription drugs inappropriately and drinking on duty.
Further concerns arose from a 2021 Department of Defense internal investigation that found Jackson made inappropriate comments about a female colleague and engaged in bullying behavior toward subordinates. These findings further complicated his reputation.
The Hanukkah reception was one of several instances in a week marked by contentious claims from the White House. In a year-end address on Wednesday, December 17, Trump made statements that were subsequently scrutinized by fact-checkers and media figures.
Among the questionable assertions was a claim that his administration had reduced prescription drug prices by “400, 500, and 600 percent.” Fox News host John Roberts later questioned Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick about the feasibility of such reductions, stating, “Well, if you cut something by 100%, the cost goes down to zero. If you cut it by four, five, or 600%, the drug companies are actually paying you to take their products.”
Trump has previously claimed even more significant price reductions, citing figures as high as 1,200 to 1,500 percent. On “Meet the Press” with Kristen Welker on October 22, Dr. Mehmet Oz attempted to defend these numbers using alternative mathematical interpretations, leaving both the host and viewers confused.
Media figures have reacted to Trump’s recent statements with various degrees of criticism. Whoopi Goldberg suggested on “The View” that Trump suffers from “Obama and Biden Derangement Syndrome,” pointing out his frequent references to his predecessors.
Jon Stewart addressed Trump’s health claims on his podcast, suggesting that Trump’s need for validation is insatiable. “For Donald Trump, the level of fealty can never rise to a level that is satisfactory for him. There is no level of ass-kissing you can do,” Stewart said, noting that even favorable coverage from Fox News does not meet Trump’s expectations.
Trump’s tendency to focus on personal achievements during events intended for other purposes has become a pattern. Presidential addresses generally center on policy matters, national issues, or ceremonial occasions, but Trump often redirects attention to personal grievances and self-promotion.
During Wednesday’s year-end address, Trump announced a $1,776 bonus for military personnel, linking it to American Revolutionary history. He suggested surplus tariff revenues would fund the bonuses. However, senior administration officials clarified that the $1,776 payments are sourced from $2.9 billion appropriated by Congress to the Defense Department in the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act passed in July 2025. The funds were intended to supplement the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) for service members. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth described the payment as a tax-free, one-time housing allowance supplement for approximately 1.28 million active-duty service members and 174,000 Reserve component members in pay grades 0-6 and below.
Although Trump credited tariff revenue for enabling the payments, the White House would need congressional approval to redirect tariff funds for such purposes. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent previously confirmed, “We need legislation for that” regarding the use of tariff funds for direct payments to Americans.
The transformation of the Hanukkah reception from a religious observance to a platform for personal declarations highlights ongoing concerns about the president’s focus and priorities. White House religious and cultural events traditionally serve diplomatic and symbolic roles, providing presidents with an opportunity to show respect for diverse communities and their traditions.
