Trump May Have Finally Explained His Excessive Bronzer With Bizarre Rally Rant

Donald Trump's physical appearance gets almost as much attention as his policies. His skin color, in particular, has been widely scrutinized; a noted photographer recently theorized that Trump's bronzer use becomes more liberal (pardon the expression) in times of stress. Trump himself may have subtly revealed his own strategy during two November 1 rallies. In Warren, Michigan, the former president declared — per a clip on X , formerly Twitter — "I could have been on the best beaches in the world — I own the best beaches in the world. ...I could have had those waves smacking me in the face. That...beautiful white skin that I have would be nice and tan. I got the whitest skin because I never have time to go out in the sun. ...it could have been beautiful tan." The divisive politician went on to repeat the claim almost verbatim the same day in Salem, Virginia, saying, "I could have been standing on a beach, my beautiful white skin getting nice and tan."

Yet the clips clearly show his skin was anything but white — not one of Trump's many tan fails, but not the pale complexion he claims to have, either. It seems odd he's so determined to call attention to the subject, but there's a savvy reason behind his claims.

It seems bizarre for a presidential candidate to go on about his skin tone when there are more pressing issues to discuss, but Donald Trump's explanation also offers a hint about his (over)use of bronzing makeup. The three-time Republican candidate is a billionaire trying to win over average Americans — a task even more difficult than the ones he used to assign contestants on "The Apprentice." So he's trying a number of strategies to earn their votes. For instance, Trump pulled a shift at McDonald's to prove he understands the struggle of low-income workers (and to thumb his nose at Vice President Kamala Harris). His discussion of his complexion sends another message: I care about America so much that I'm willing to sacrifice my life of leisure for the grind of the White House.

Hence the heavy pancake. Trump is reminding his legion of supporters he's not in this for the power or money, but because he feels called to help them. He could be spending his days sunning on the sand at Mar-a-Lago, but instead, he has to settle for looking as though he does. Judging by the laughs and nods of approval the former president gets when he talks about his "beautiful white skin," the ploy is working. But truthfully, he might do just as well if he laid off the bronzer. We had our photo editor show Trump without his disastrous tan and his natural skin tone makes him look healthier and more fit to serve a second term, beach or no beach.