Tot has tantrum on White House carpet as Trump accused of ‘hissy match’ over Falklands
A toddler ran rings around Trump at the Oval Office carpet at an event to hail medication that restored his hearing. The event came as as war heroes and British politicians blasted the President’s ‘childish’ behaviour over the Falkland Islands.
Travis Smith, two, lies on the floor as President Donald Trump speaks(Image: AP)
Donald Trump might be used to being the centre of attention, but he was completely upstaged by a barefoot toddler who decided the Oval Office was the perfect place to lie down. Two-year-old Travis Smith became the breakout star of a high-profile White House event, leaving the US President playing second fiddle.
Dressed in a dapper mini-suit but ditching his shoes for the occasion, little Travis stole the show as he tumbled across the famous carpet while the Commander-in-Chief attempted to deliver a serious speech.
As Trump praised a “miracle” drug that restored the youngster’s hearing, Travis decided he’d had enough of the formal chat.
The cheeky lad broke free from his mum Sierra’s arms, performed a celebratory victory dance and then threw himself directly onto the floor.
Lying down on the plush White House rug, it looked like the President, known for his childish rants, looked like he’d finally met his match.
The rare sight of a toddler treating the most powerful room in the world like a soft-play centre left stony-faced officials struggling to hide their smirks.
Watching the energetic youngster, Trump said: “That’s really incredible. He was 100 percent deaf, but he took this miracle cure and now he can hear his mum, Sierra, say, ‘I love you.'”
Travis was one of the first children in the world to undergo a ground-breaking FDA-backed gene therapy as part of a clinical trial. Before the treatment started at 18 months old, the world was a silent place for the youngster.
His mum, Sierra, couldn’t hide her pride as her son continued to zoom around the room. She explained how the drug, paired with surgery, has allowed him to discover a love for music.
She said: “100%… He didn’t know his name. He couldn’t hear me tell him how much I loved him. He can now listen to music and he loves it, he loves to dance and he loves instruments. I’m so proud of him.
“He’s been so brave through all of this. And, yeah, now he can hear. He has a bright future ahead of him and I’m so thankful to everybody on the Regeneron team.”
The event came as Trump was accused of having a “hissy fit” of his own after reports emerged that Trump is planning to back Argentina’s claim to Falkland Islands.
Emails leaked from the Pentagon to US media appeared to show Washington DC could review its position on their sovereignty in response to Britain not entering the Iran war.
Falklands war hero Simon Weston branded the move a “hissy fit” – while Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper insisted the sovereignty of the islands is “not in question”.
A total of 255 British Armed Forces personnel were killed in the 72-day war to regain the islands in 1982, with another 777 left wounded.
Welsh Guardsman Simon Weston was left with life-changing burns covering 46% of his body when the RFA Sir Galahad was bombed by an Argentinian fighter jet. He was awarded a CBE in 2016 for his decades of charity work for British veterans and their families.
Speaking of his “sadness” for the islanders and his fellow veterans on hearing the news of the plans, he said: “He’s thrown them under a bus, because he’s having a hissy fit around no-one wanting to go to his fight.”
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