Is Donald Trump resigning? The wild, wild theories about US president’s announcement today

United States President Donald Trump — what will he do now? That’s the question on everyone’s minds after the White House apprised the press that the president will make an announcement at 2 pm Eastern Time (11.30 pm IST) on Tuesday, September 2.

The news has set off wild speculations on the internet, partly driven by rumours about Trump’s health. The American president’s absence from the public eye for a few days last week sent netizens into a frenzy, with many wondering about his whereabouts.

Now, all eyes are on what announcement Trump will make today.

Here is a look at some of the bizarre theories making the rounds.

Is Trump resigning?

Even if it seems ludicrous, one of the speculations is that Trump will resign as the US president.

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The buzz has taken hold amid a rise in questions about the Republican leader’s health.

“ Trump Is Dead” and “Where Is Trump?” trended on X in the US on Friday (August 29). Several posts flooded the platform, with users conjecturing about the president’s health after POTUS was not seen in the public eye following a White House Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that week.

A photograph of Trump’s bruised hand during the Cabinet meeting had gone viral, with social media users wondering about his health.

The speculations had prompted White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt to clarify that the bruising was due to Trump “shaking hands all day, every day.”

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However, rumours that the US president is “dead” did not die even then, as his lack of any major public appearance further fuelled the fire. Trump was finally spotted golfing at his Virginia golf club on August 30.

That also failed to convince the internet that Trump is alive. After his photos leaving for the golf club surfaced, the conspiracy theorists made baseless claims that it was not the POTUS but his “body double”.

While away from the public eye, Trump has been active on his Truth Social platform.

Amid reports of the US president making a new announcement, a user wrote on X, “Maybe it’s the new President? They didn’t state ‘Trump’,”

“Here’s a guess — Trump is out, citing health issues. Vance is POTUS immediately. He names a VP, which Congress must confirm — that’s why it is happening before 2026 mid-terms. Per Project 2025 schedule,” another wrote.

Hopefully, all rumours will be put to rest as the US president makes an appearance today.

🚨 BREAKING: President Trump will be making an “announcement” from the Oval Office Tuesday at 2pm ET

Get ready 😏

What’s it going to be this time?! pic.twitter.com/ZUBY8a5VLF

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) September 2, 2025

Is it tariff-related?

Ties between India and the US have taken a nosedive after the Trump administration imposed 50 per cent tariffs on India, of which 25 per cent is a “penalty” on New Delhi for purchasing Russian oil.

India has resisted the US pressure to make a lopsided trade deal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin reaffirmed the relations between the two countries as they held talks on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in China on Monday.

The bonhomie between Modi, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping was on display at the recent summit. It appears this rattled feathers in Washington.

Hours after the three leaders met, Trump took to his Truth Social platform on Monday, terming the India-US trade equation a “one-sided disaster”. He also claimed that New Delhi has offered to slash its tariffs on American goods to “nothing”, but it was “getting late” for that now.

The US president posted: “What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us… The reason is that India has charged us, until now, such high tariffs… that our businesses are unable to sell into India. It has been a totally one sided disaster!”

India is yet to respond to Trump’s latest claims.

As per an Associated Press (AP) report, the US administration could impose steep levies on imported medicines, with officials even considering 200 per cent taxes on some drugs.

The pharmaceutical sector has so far remained exempt from Trump’s high tariffs. The taxes on Indian medicines supplied to the US would significantly hit the Indian pharma companies, as nearly 40 per cent of the South Asian country’s total pharma exports are shipped to the US market, according to a report by SBI Research.

A peace deal between Russia and Ukraine?

This is another theory that the netizens believe could happen. However, this is another conjecture that seems far from reality. After Trump met Putin in Alaska, the two leaders decided to continue talks to reach a deal to end the fighting in Ukraine.

Recently, Russia launched a massive overnight attack on 14 regions of Ukraine, as Kyiv struck Russian oil refineries. Some speculate that Trump could announce a trilateral meeting between himself, Putin, and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, however, remains elusive — at least for the time being.

More speculations

A more believable theory circulating online is that Trump could send National Guard troops to Chicago amid his crackdown on immigration.

“CHICAGO NATIONAL GUARD GOING IN!” a user wrote.

This comes amid objections from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Trump had warned Pritzker in a post on Truth Social, referring to recent crime in Chicago and saying that the governor “better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming!”

Amid Trump’s gold obsession, some users joked he could “polish up the Statue of Liberty”.

With inputs from agencies