Was Joe Biden ‘sleeping’ at Jimmy Carter's funeral? Expert seemingly debunks viral claims

President Joe Biden came under fire for allegedly continuing his ‘sleepy’ streak at Jimmy Carter's funeral.

‘Sleepy Joe’ Biden’s shuteye at Jimmy Carter’s funeral went viral after he and the other four living US presidents —George W Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump—gathered together on Thursday. The 82-year-old POTUS has often made headlines for allegedly falling asleep at key meetings, adding to speculations of his “obvious cognitive decline.”

U.S. President Joe Biden gestures next to a casket during a service, on the day of the State Funeral for former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, U.S., January 9, 2025. (REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid )

On Thursday, he again faced ire when he was pictured with closed eyes and his head down as politicos came together under one roof to honour the life of former President Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29, aged 100. Social media critics sounded thunderous disapproval of the outgoing president, assuming he had continued his alleged dozing-off streak at public events.

Body language shuts down speculations of Joe Biden sleeping at Jimmy Carter's funeral

Eventually shutting down those claims, body language expert Patti Wood came to Biden’s rescue. Potentially debunking the Internet fire, she suggested that instead of falling asleep, the commander-in-chief may have partaken in a more obvious gesture of expressing his grief for Carter, with whom he shared a decades-long friendship. “When something is very painful or you’re grieving, there’s a higher tendency for you to close your eyes,” Wood told The US Sun. The widely recognised expert on nonverbal communication explained that the eye blocking technique people often rely on to block painful emotions is a standard behaviour at funerals.

Wood, who also specialises in body language mannerisms exhibited while grieving, even weighed in on the possibility of Biden “catching a few winks because he’s tired and fatigued” in the lady days of the presidency. However, she ultimately gave more precedence to him merely acting in accordance with the solemn routine at such events. “It's also typical of somebody specifically in grief, trauma, and loss at a funeral,” she added.

Donald Trump vs Joe Biden's mannerisms at Jimmy Carter's funeral

Wood’s deep dive into Biden’s body language seems even more fitting as comparisons are drawn between his and Donald Trump’s actions. Contrary to the older politician breaking down at the sight of Carter’s approaching casket, the president-elect appeared “distracted.”

Wood also noticed that the Republican leader didn’t have his hand over his heart like others. Keenly observing Trump’s behaviour at the gathering, the expert said of him leaning in to laugh with Barack Obama. “In this situation, he's nonverbally making an effort to lean over into him and to talk to him and joke around with him,” she said. Wood even drew attention to a “glowering” and “angry” Melania Trump sitting beside her husband, whose stance indicated “no cues that she wants to be seen as his partner.”

Easy-to-miss scene between Donald Trump and his former running mate

Catching another moment with Trump at the centre that would have possibly eluded the larger audience’s notice, she dissected the incoming president’s thumb placement during a handshake with his former Vice President Mike Pence.

Calling it the “dig handshake,” she continued, “He's actually digging in to that fairly sensitive area between the forefinger and thumb of Pence.” She believes that by doing so, Trump intended to assert his position as the “top dog” and “hurt” Pence, who, on the other hand, responded with a “shield movement.” The pair have been on the outs since the Jan 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection when Trump backed the rioters while his running mate was front in line to say he was “proud that we did our part” to certify Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 presidential election.