On August 29, 2025, X account @PobBase (a self-described parody account) had posted about the American flag at the White House flying at half-staff, including a picture of the White House at night with the flag at the mid-point of the pole.The post received over 2.9 million views as of this writing. For the uninitiated, flags are usually flown at half-mast as a sign of state mourning to honor the death of important leaders or in recognition of a national tragedy.On August 28, 2025, Donald Trump announced that all flags across the White House and other buildings will fly at half-staff to pay respect to the victims of the recent Catholic school shooting in Minnesota. The shooting resulted in the death of two students and left 17 injured, as reported by CBS News.While it is true that the flag at the White House is at half-staff, the photo that @PobBase uploaded as part of its now-viral post is an old picture taken in December 2024 to honor the death of President Jimmy Carter.White House flag to fly at half-staff till August 31On August 27, 2025, President Donald Trump announced that all flags at the "White House, all public buildings and grounds, military posts, naval stations and vessels" will be flown at half-staff till August 31, 2025, "as a mark of respect for the victims."“I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, August 31, 2025,” the president said in a press release.Furthermore, he continued that the flag will remain at half-staff across "all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations" till the aforementioned date.Meanwhile, questions about Trump's health and rumors of his alleged death ran rampant on social media after users noted he hadn’t been seen publicly on Thursday, August 28, or Friday, August 29, and allegedly canceled upcoming appearances.Yash Bajaj @aye_nakliLINKWeird night in DC. Let's look at facts - - Trump hasn't been seen in a few days- he was supposed to fly to NJ yesterday but that was cancelled- Twitter users in DC claiming they saw an ambulance with a motorcade leaving the White House - Flags are at half staff because of the shooting - Vances weird comment the other day- His last Truth Social post users and AI reckon was written by staffers instead of Trump himself- No upcoming plans this weekend- press conference has been announced for 8am and Whitehouse website says it's going live soonNothing concrete but there's several reasons why rumours are currently swirling.However, Vice President JD Vance clarified that the president was in "incredibly good health" in an exclusive interview with USA Today, dated August 28, 2025.“He’s got incredible energy, and while most of the people that work around the president of the United States are younger than he is, I think that we find that he actually is the last person who goes to sleep, he’s the last person making phone calls at night, and he’s the first person who wakes up and the first person making phone calls in the morning," Vance said.President Trump and JD Vance Visit Arlington National Cemetery On Memorial Day (Image via Getty Images)In July 2025, the White House stated that the president, aged 79, had been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a condition where a person's leg veins become damaged, causing blood to pool in the legs and leading to swelling and ulcers.Elsewhere in the interview, Vance said he was willing to take over for President Donald Trump in the event of a "terrible tragedy." Vance's answer came after the reporter asked him if he was ready to step in and lead the country if anything happened to Trump, to which he responded:“Yes, things can always happen...Yes, terrible tragedies happen. And if, God forbid, there’s a terrible tragedy, I can’t think of better on-the-job training than what I’ve gotten over the last 200 days.”In other news, a picture of Donald Trump's hand, showing a patch of his skin apparently covered with light foundation, recently went viral on social media, prompting more questions about the president's health.Neither the president nor his official aides have responded to the recent picture or the viral rumors of his death at the time of writing this article.