Did Bill Clinton Fall Asleep During The Inauguration?

Nothing escapes social media, and it would seem that perhaps Bill Clinton dozing off during Joe Biden's inauguration today is one that the Twittersphere can't help but to share and dissect.

It happened at the start of Joe Biden's first speech to the American people as president. The camera found its way to where the 42nd president was sitting, alongside Secretary Hillary Clinton, showing that Clinton did have his eyes closed. Was he nodding off though? He opens his eyes briefly, so it doesn't seem as if he was truly asleep; perhaps just resting his eyes as he listened to Biden address the nation. Clinton is 74 years old.

Possibly catching a wink during a political speech, however, is not new to the former commander in chief, as he was accused (including by Donald Trump) of a similar moment back in 2016 when Hillary Clinton accepted her party's nomination at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia (via Roll Call). However, even in that clip, it seems as if Clinton may be looking down? Not actually closing his eyes, certainly not taking a nap.

Of course, the discussion over whether or not former President Bill Clinton fell asleep during Joe Biden's speech would not even be happening had not the camera caught Clinton in such a state. A split-second later and the camera would have found him when he opened his eyes (briefly albeit and then closed them again). As it is, the camera cuts back to Biden quickly in the actual clip; the moment lasts but a few seconds (via the Daily Mirror).

However, the camera did catch Clinton with his eyes closed, and Twitter made sure that others knew of it, too — just in case we missed it (per The New York Post). Sebastian Gorga (@SebGorka), who served as a deputy assistant to former President Trump from January to August 2017, posted a screenshot with the caption, "Biden only just started talking and @BillClinton's already asleep." Another user, @marklutchman, posted his own still of the moment, observing that "Bill Clinton has fallen asleep."

The actual clip was posted by user @the_lunarfather, who wrote, "bill clinton is really asleep rn," and on YouTube, the clip of Clinton with his eyes closed is actually slowed down, which makes it appear much longer than the moment is. And so was Bill Clinton asleep during Biden's speech? No one can say with certainty since the camera doesn't stay on him for long, but it could very well be him simply resting his eyes but not exactly drifting off.