5 Times Donald Trump Proved His 70s Are His Worst Hair Decade

Among the many questions that have plagued the United States since the 2016 election, one question in particular persists: Why is Donald Trump's hair like that? While likely few but Trump have the full answer, it is clear to anyone that over time, his hair is somehow getting weirder. Hat hair from his infamous red "Make America Great Again" baseball cap is no threat to Trump's iconic 'do, and seemingly no glance in the mirror or photo of himself taken at any angle can convince him to abandon it.

Trump's delicate, pale yellow strands are perpetually brushed to cover up a dark secret atop his head. Whether it's a bald spot, a receding hairline, or something more sinister is anyone's guess. Whatever the reason, Trump has stayed committed to the hairstyle. It has withstood becoming a meme, an easily exaggerated trait in political cartoons, and a simple scoff in the face of beauty standards. There are photos of the former president with that quintessential coiffed swoosh of hair as far back as the '80s. Although, the butter yellow dye job didn't start until later, likely when he went grey. There was never a time in Trump's adult life that he was likely to win a "Best Hair" superlative. Yet, being in his 70s has given what is surely the most iconic combover in the history of hair, a brand new life. Here's our roundup of five moments that prove that Trump's hair is just getting worse. 

When Donald Trump arrived at Trump Tower on May 30, 2024 he had more to worry about than the fact that he had just become the first U.S. president to be convicted on criminal charges. He also had the wind to contend with. A strong gust caught hold of Trump's combover, lifting it up like a single piece of fabric on a clothesline. He still gave an appreciative fist-in-the-air gesture to his fans, despite the fact that the elements were exposing his scalp.

This photo doesn't just show how Trump's combover acts as one solid material, it also reveals just how complex his hairstyle really is. He seems to have a part on both sides of his head, but only one is visible from the front. The length goes past his collar in the back and is, presumably, even longer in the front. Different parts of his hair are brushed into swirls in different directions and frozen with product. While the former president's hair may be getting even more confusing with each passing year, one thing is constant: He has quite an intricate styling routine. 

A photo of Donald Trump during his criminal fraud trial in May 2024 drew attention to an aspect of his hair that is often overlooked: His extremely long sideburns. Rather than being trimmed, Trump's are grown out to the same length as the rest of his hair. They also often appear to be greasy in a way that the rest of his hair isn't. The likely culprit is hairspray keeping everything in place and covering up the top of his ears by being brushing his sideburns neatly into the wave of hair at the back of his head. This begs the question: What does it look like when Trump's sideburns aren't hit with product? Does he actually have a bob? Is the front of his hair much longer than the back of his hair? And, if so, does this mean that if styled correctly, he would have a longer version of the iconic Kate Gosselin haircut of the early aughts? 

We'll likely never get the answer to these burning question or discover what Trump's hair really looks like when he wakes up in the morning. But, thanks to this one particular day in court, we know what it looks like when Trump feels inspired by "Spongebob Squarepants." The former president leaned into the aesthetic of his bold yellow tie and styled his hair to be particularly cube-like.

Whether it was the lighting or just a sign that he was running low on hair product, Donald Trump's hair looked particularly see-through while celebrating New Year's Eve at Mar-a-Lago in December 2022. His classic forehead swoop had some extra volume and frizz and seemed even more detached from the rest of his tresses than usual.

Another part of Trump's classic look further exacerbated the unsettling appearance of his hair at this event: His tan. Whether he uses to get his strange hue, Trump is always dedicated to looking unnaturally orange. Yet, this desire never seems to extend too far past his cheeks. Trump seems perfectly comfortable with showing the world the natural color of his ears, and he never bothers to inch too close to his eyes when altering his skin tone. His unusual tan isn't quite as jarring as his hair, but when the two work together it's quite a sight as this photo demonstrates.

Joining the ranks of stars like Nick Nolte, Michael Jackson, and Frank Sinatra, Donald became the subject of one of the most famous celebrity mugshots ever snapped in August 2023. The simple fact of a former president facing felony charges for illegally attempting to overturn a presidential election was already enough to make Trump's mugshot go down in history. Yet, he gave the image an extra edge by forgoing the typical expressionless look for a menacing scowl.

However, Trump's tough guy routine also allowed his hair to take center stage. In an apparent attempt to perfect his glare, Trump positioned his chin down, peeking out from beneath his angry, bushy brows, and the unusual angle puts his glistening hairdo perfectly in frame in all its glory. As a professor at the University of Southern California Annenberg School of Communications, Marty Kaplan, told the Associated Press, this mugshot "will be forever part of the iconography of being alive in this time," and it's safe to say that the same is true about Trump's hair. 

Donald Trump had turned 70 six months before his January 2017 inauguration, and it's easy to see just how much the state of his locks deteriorated over the years that followed. Even so, a photo of Donald with his arm around his wife, Melania Trump, at his Inaugural Ball shows the back of his head looking like a measly clump of hair that one might remove from a Barbie's hairbrush.

Whether you love or hate this one-of-a-kind political figure, we can all agree that Donald has been busy in his 70s. He became the president, led the country during a pandemic, lost an election, argued endlessly that he actually won that election, debatably inspired an insurrection, chose to run for president again after getting voted out, and made history by becoming the first president to be indicted on criminal charges. Surely, not even the strongest hair follicles in the world could withstand that kind of stress. While his hair may be getting a little thinner, messier, and overall stranger, we have to commend Donald on one thing: No one knows how to have a signature look quite like him.