Donald Trump found himself trending once again this week, but not for the reasons he likely hoped.
The president was a complete distraction at the funeral ceremony for Sen. Lindsey Graham on Tuesday, July 28 from the moment he took a seat.
He arrived in his seat after everyone else, then fell asleep and woke up to deliver a baffling eulogy that read more like a tangent about himself. Others say his most shocking act was that tapping on Graham’s casket.
Critics say he treated one of Washington’s most solemn traditions like recess.
Yet somehow, one blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment inside the Washington National Cathedral became the internet’s favorite topic.
Trump sat beside Vice President JD Vance during Graham’s homegoing service on Tuesday, July 28.
White House officials and mourners gathered to pay their final respects to the longtime South Carolina lawmaker.
It was meant to be a solemn occasion, but one moment proved Trump has something else in mind and he dragged Vance along for his antics.
During a brief pause in the homegoing service, the president reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small container of Tic Tacs.
President Trump pulls out some Tic Tacs and shows them to JD Vance. pic.twitter.com/JXG76yUKGg
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 28, 2026
He leaned toward Vance, appearing to offer him one. Vance smiled and rejected it as he wanted no parts of what Trump was cooking.
Trump then poured one of the mints into his hand, tried to pop it into his mout. But the before the tiny treat slipped from Trump’s fingers and under the church pews.
The brief exchange made its way online as social media users wasted no time immediately compared it to another memorable presidential candy exchange.
One Threads user said, “Look at JD’s face. He’s thinking 2 things, how did I get here and it’s going to take a lot more than two tic tacs.” On YouTube, critics called the moment unnecessary.
“How disrespectful. All 3. Joking it up in front of the coffin. Suppose to be a solemn moment. And all over a tic tic. Never forget. How does he behave before, during and after, behind the scene, when our brave soldiers arrive home in their coffins? He really doesn’t care about anyone but himself.”
Another said, “Disrespectful….what did you expect? All he cares about is himself. Why did he bother to go? I would be furious if it were my dad’s funeral.”
Then things got messier. In response to the footage of Trump fumbling the mint on his first try, another person said, “Trump missed his mouth on the first attempt, and it fell on the floor.”
They alo noticed, “He got the job done on the second try. Naturally, he didn’t pick the first one up and left it on the floor,” Another user pointed out, “It’s not an unexpected moment it’s a staged moment and he’s copying it off a moment shared by George Bush and the Obamas.”
During Sen. John McCain’s funeral in 2018, former President George W. Bush quietly handed former first lady Michelle Obama a piece of candy while they were seated together.
Even Barack and Michelle Obama have become regular targets, with Trump repeatedly airing old grievances and taking fresh public shots at the former first family.
The candy pass between Michelle Obama and George W. Bush, mirroring the one that warmed our hearts during the funeral of John McCain. pic.twitter.com/TDnunfnL4E
— Brenna Williams (@brennawilliams) December 5, 2018
Bush has long credited his habit of needling Obama during long eulogies.
“I get a little antsy during the long-winded eulogies, so I started cracking a few jokes,” Obama told Jimmy Kimmel back in 2021. He added that Obama “seemed to think they’re funny.”
This time, commenters said Trump and Vance were staging their own version of that moment. Many said it was missing the charm.
“He’s trying to have a Bush/Michelle moment with JD. He’s so pathetic,” one person wrote on X. Another added, “Haha he’s trolling the Bush Michelle clip.”
Not everyone was as nostalgic. Even though they thought the pair was trying to copy the Bush/Obama exchange, some pointed to rumors about the president — rehashing some of his earlier work.
The Tic Tac moment was not the only awkward beat of the day for Trump.
Bush and Obama’s mint moment became shorthand for genuine warmth across party lines. Trump’s Tic Tac routine landed as something else entirely.
It landed as a punchline. One social media user summed it up bluntly. That user wrote that sociopaths “learn to be human by mimicry.” The implication was clear. Trump may have been chasing a viral moment rather than sharing one.
