About

The Donald Trump Catheter Theory refers to an online conspiracy theory that U.S. President Donald Trump wears a Foley catheter on his leg to collect urine due to his old age and an inability to control his bladder. The theory gained notable traction in June 2025, when Trump was photographed at a UFC event with fighter Kayla Harrison. Some viewers believed that a bump seen in his left pant leg was a catheter tube. Memes, viral posts and internet discourse surfaced in the following days. In prior years, a similar theory about Trump wearing diapers had sparked several memes and viral moments like the Real Men Wear Diapers campaign.

Origin

Viral posts theorizing about President Donald Trump using a catheter first surfaced in 2019, starting with a satirical news story from Raw Story,^[1] titled "‘Trump will be glued to the screen with an IV drip and a catheter’ when Mueller testifies: GOP strategist." The link was posted in a tweet^[2] shared by its author, Bob Brigham, on July 22nd, 2019, gaining over 1,300 likes in six years.

On August 9th, 2021, X^[2] user @itsJeffTiedrich tweeted, "Donald J. Trump, the catheter in America's penis," gaining over 3,800 likes in four years (shown below).

June 2025 UFC Photograph

Despite jokes in prior years, the Donald Trump catheter theory didn't gain significant traction until early June 2025, when Trump attended a UFC event where American fighter Kayla Harrison defeated fellow American Julianna Peña on June 7th.^[3] Harrison greeted Trump after the victory and let him try on her champion's belt.^[4]

A photograph of Trump wearing the belt was posted by X^[5] user @LeadingReport and the Instagram^[6] account @oldrowofficial (shown below). The former received over 748,000 views, 8,600 likes and 280 replies in three days.

On June 8th, X^[7] user @esjesjesj quote-tweeted @LeadingReport, theorizing that a crease in Trump's pants was a catheter. Over three days, the post gained over 3,500 likes (shown below).

Spread

In the following days, others spread the theory that President Donald Trump was wearing a catheter at the UFC event on June 7th, 2025.

For instance, on June 9th, 2025, X^[8] user @RationalBlonde tweeted, "Trump is absolutely wearing a Foley catheter," gaining over 30,000 likes in two days (shown below).

On June 10th, Threads ^[9] user @jasmine.lorimer also theorized that the bump in Trump's pants was a catheter, further noting that Trump was at the event during the June 2025 LA ICE Protests. In a day, the post received roughly 3,500 likes (shown below).

Numerous YouTube channels also discussed the theory in mid-June 2025 as it spread online. For example, YouTubers
Jesse Dollemore^[10] (seen below, left) and David Pakman Show^[11] (seen below, right) covered it on June 10th, receiving over 656,000 views on the former and 575,000 views on the latter, each in 24 hours.

Search Interest

External References