Former President Bill Clinton was seen departing from New York’s upscale Hamptons area on Thursday, accompanied by a portable defibrillator in his luggage, reigniting concerns about his long history of health issues.
Clinton, 79, wore a tropical shirt and brown fedora while boarding a private jet, closely flanked by Secret Service agents and his wife of nearly five decades, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Observers noted he was carrying what appeared to be a Propaq MD Air Medical Bag — a high-tech device used to monitor heart activity and deliver emergency shocks for those at risk of cardiac arrest, according to the Daily Mail.
The former president has faced serious health setbacks since his 2004 heart bypass surgery, which was followed by lung complications and later stent placements. In 2021, Clinton was hospitalized again for sepsis stemming from a urological infection.
Despite the medical gear in hand, Clinton had appeared energetic this summer while promoting his political thriller, The First Gentleman, co-authored with novelist James Patterson. Meanwhile, the health of another 79-year-old President Donald Trump remains a topic of speculation, the New York Post reported.
While his team insists he’s in excellent shape, Trump has been photographed recently with heavy makeup covering what appeared to be a large bruise on his hand. “I want to try and get to heaven if possible,” Trump remarked last week, joking about his spiritual standing.
In July, Trump reignited conspiracy theories about Clinton’s alleged connections to Jeffrey Epstein, claiming the former president visited Epstein’s island “28 times.” Trump denied ever going there himself.
However, those accusations were contradicted in a recent interview by Ghislaine Maxwell. According to a transcript reviewed by Newsweek, Maxwell stated Clinton “absolutely never went” to Epstein’s private U.S. Virgin Islands residence.
Clinton also publicly denied the allegations in a 2019 statement, and no confirmed evidence has tied him to the island. As both political heavyweights continue to age, their health and legacies remain intertwined in the public eye — and in the headlines.