Donald Trump Fumed Over 'Cankles' Coverage as White House Aides Whispered He Was 'Old,' New Book Claims

Donald Trump was reportedly less than impressed about the number of headlines his "cankles" caused, as even White House aides started whispering about his age.

New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan reported these claims in their book Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump.

"Some of Trump's aides began to say privately that for the first time he was beginning to seem old to them," they wrote.

The White House, however, has maintained public statements about the president's exceptional health. In fact, when reports began to surge about his swollen ankles, an official statement was made to get ahead of the stories.

Trump's swollen ankles, termed "cankles," are a result of chronic venous insufficiency, which the president was reportedly diagnosed with last year, per the BBC.

Haberman and Swan stated in the book that "Trump was upset about all the coverage of his swollen ankles, and he insisted Karoline Leavitt address it at the podium," referring to the official statement.

They also alleged that not everyone in the West Wing agreed with his decision. According to them, many thought that officially addressing his "cankles" was a "peculiar choice." However, it matched Trump's reputation for being highly careful about his public image.

Haberman and Swan claimed in the book that President Trump's closest White House aides had started noticing his deteriorating health quite early on in the second term.

"Those who spent time with him could see the signs - the moments of fatigue, the cupped hand behind the ear - but Trump's personal dominance in any room often papered over what his body could no longer fully conceal," the book claimed.

They also stated that Trump allegedly suffers from age-related hearing loss to some extent, which makes him ask people to repeat their questions often.

In fact, this is also why the president decided to hold frequent press conferences in the Oval Office.

"Joint press conferences with world leaders were more often held in the Oval Office than in the East Room, in part because the acoustics were better, and he didn't have to stand for an hour," they added in the book.

Haberman and Swan stated that despite claims from Trump and his doctors about his perfect health, the reality, they alleged, was quite different.

"In the first year of his second term, he became almost entirely housebound, shuttling mainly between his comfort zones - the White House or one of his clubs," they alleged in the book.

The White House, though, seemingly had a different opinion.

White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told The Daily Mail that the claims of Trump's health being in a sharp decline in the book are nothing but rumors.

"President Trump's sharpness, unmatched energy, and historic accessibility stand in stark contrast to what we saw during the last administration, when Democrats and the legacy media intentionally covered up Joe Biden's serious mental and physical decline from the American people," Ingle said.

He concluded his statement by saying, "President Trump is the sharpest and most accessible president in American history who is working nonstop to solve problems and deliver on his promises."