It turns out there may be a (medical) method to Donald Trump’s fake tan madness. The media was waiting with bated breath for the most recent report as the 78-year-old president underwent a routine physical. And while Reuters reported that the White House physician said that Trump was in good health, in a documented list of medications that the president takes, we noticed one important detail. The outlet reported that, along with two different medications that Trump takes to control his high cholesterol, he also uses mometasone cream to keep his rosacea in check.

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According to the Mayo Clinic, rosacea is a common skin condition that results in redness and sometimes bumps on an individual’s face, a bit of information that finally provides some empirical evidence as to how Trump’s ongoing bronzer disaster unlocks his true psyche. Given that rosacea does not have a cure, Trump using topical treatments like his mometasone cream to mitigate flare ups gives his long history of appearing with an orange-tint some context. Of course there are also less drastic ways to balance out skin tone, especially because our cosmetic dermatologist said there may be some damage lurking under that tanner… But Trump’s official medical report gives us a kernel of insight and understanding, as his drastic dermatological choice does indeed have a root cause.

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It’s not hard to believe that a skin condition like rosacea would make anyone feel a little insecure about showing the world their untouched skin. And according to Omarosa Manigault-Newman, former assistant to the president (and former “The Apprentice” contestant), it may have been motivation for Trump to hit the tanning bed daily. She wrote in her book, “Unhinged: An Insider’s Account of the Trump White House,” that “he prefers to do it in the morning so he ‘looks good’ all day.“ But we have some evidence that, if Trump wanted, he could look just fine without putting himself through whatever work comes with looking so dark. Our photo team performed some Photoshop magic and gave Trump a wipe to give him his natural color back and the result was perfectly fine.

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Not only that, but there have been rare times Trump was spotted without his orange tan and he also looked… Normal. In 2019, YouTube footage documented Trump stopping by a church service to show support in the wake of the Virginia Beach mass shooting and he stood on stage as a pastor prayed and looked decidedly less bronze — and also totally fine. Another instance saw Trump posing in an Instagram photo with Rick Scott in his prized MAGA hat without his full face of armor on, and while Trump looked less tan than the sunny Florida senator, he also looked healthy and human. So, while we understand the self-consciousness that comes with rosacea, we still think Trump might be overdoing it with the bronzer.

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