U.S. President Donald Trump drew strong reactions after an unusual speech gaffe during a White House event celebrating the coal industry on Wednesday, February 11, 2026.
During the event, Trump gave a speech after being honored with the title, “Undisputed Champion of Coal,” by the Washington Coal Club.
However, during the speech, Trump appeared to lose track of his words when he said, “I’m proud to officially name the undispuut…” before pausing and muttering a few other unclear words.
According to The Daily Beast, this confounding word salad drew attention towards his declining health, now that he has already turned 79.
But his gibberish only lasted for a fleeting second before the President asked, “When did this come out? Mr. Speaker,” quickly returning to his prepared remarks.
He then continued with, “The undisputed champion of beautiful, clean coal. We have to proceed, always—don’t use the word coal, you know, it needs a PR job”
His overall speech came as part of the event focused on promoting coal-based energy and defending the fossil fuel industry. However, as the speech came with his strange slip-up, it became a topic of political and public discussion.
Trump, slurring: I’m proud to officially name the…undishpu..the…jshhhh…whendidthiscomeout pic.twitter.com/B79u3Mawbi
— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) February 11, 2026
Another of Trump’s rivals, California Gov. Gavin Newsom took to his X account to troll the President by posting the footage via his press office, with the caption, “The sundowning starts earlier every day”.
As the mockery filled the internet, White House spokesman Davis Ingle defended Trump, calling him “the sharpest, most accessible, and energetic president in American history.”
He also slammed media coverage and dismissed correlations raised between the President’s health and performance. Meanwhile, it’s not just the fumble that raised eyebrows, even certain contents of the speech gained media attention.
The speech also included one of Trump’s familiar criticisms of wind energy. During the event, he again spoke against wind turbines, calling them “crazy windmills.”
Windmills are an economic and environmental disaster. I don’t want even one built during my Administration. The thousands of dead and broken ones should be ripped down ASAP. Most expensive energy, only work with massive government subsidies, which we will no longer pay!
Donald…
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) January 15, 2025
Speaking at the event, Trump made a circular motion with his finger while talking about wind turbines, and claimed they are made in China but not widely used there. He then urged people to find wind farms in China, while also calling wind turbines “losers.”
“I’m not a big fan of those crazy windmills. They’re made in China but not used by China. Let’s look for a couple of wind farms in China. See if you can find one… You’re supposed to make money with energy, not lose money with energy” he said.
The coal event was meant to celebrate coal workers and highlight the administration’s support for the coal industry. However, Donald Trump’s brief speech impairment and his hatred for windmills, became the center of attention instead.
Public and political views quickly shifted from the event to bigger questions about the President’s public performances.
