Donald Trump‘s signature combover may have finally met its match: time. In recent days, the president has been making headlines for something less policy-driven and more personal: his rapidly thinning hair. From a too-casual MAGA hat appearance in the Situation Room to a recent photograph taken at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Trump’s increasingly visible scalp is fueling speculation that the hat isn’t just merch. It’s a cover-up in plain sight.
When Trump recently wore his infamous red “Make America Great Again” hat during a serious, classified Situation Room briefing, critics scoffed at the inappropriateness.
But after a series of candid photographs exposed the back and front of his head (revealing an aggressively receding hairline and bare patches his combover can no longer mask), his growing hat habit started to make more sense.
Whether in a red MAGA cap or a white “USA” version, Trump has rarely been seen without a hat in public.
And now, the reason why seems more cosmetic than symbolic. The hair that once inspired memes, magazine illustrations, and parody accounts may finally be thinning beyond repair.
Donald Trump’s Hair Evolution From Comb-overs to Cover-ups
Donald Trump’s hair has long played a starring role in his public persona. From glossy magazine illustrations to late-night monologues, it has been meme fodder for decades. As far back as 2015, Vanity Fair published an illustrated history of Trump’s hair, while The Washington Post once listed the “100 best descriptions of Donald Trump’s hair ever.”
More recently, in December 2024, The Palm Beach Post chronicled Trump’s hairdos over the years, from windblown disasters to a slicked-back reinvention that oddly drew online approval.
Donald Trump’s no hat Aura is UNMATCHED 🔥 pic.twitter.com/14g7lHYWtz
— MAGA Voice (@MAGAVoice) February 9, 2025
But it’s the photos from June 24, 2025, that have reignited the hair debate with renewed intensity. Captured exiting his private plane at Schiphol Airport, Trump was briefly seen without his white USA-branded cap. The image revealed a scalp far more visible than in years past, with the famous front combover losing its edge and the back crown area nearly bald.
A separate image taken just days earlier showed similar bald spots from behind. Confirming that the combover is now fighting a losing battle. Parody accounts on X (formerly Twitter), devoted entirely to Trump’s hair, have had a field day. In contrast, others pointed out that the use of hats in solemn or formal settings has only amplified suspicions of vanity gone rogue.
The Politics of Trump’s Headgear
While Trump’s hair has long been a punchline, his choice to wear a MAGA hat during a classified briefing in the Situation Room crosses into new territory. The move drew bipartisan ridicule, but if the latest images are any clue, his motivation might have been less political and more personal.
Nicki Swift’s recent piece points out the pattern: as the effectiveness of his combover fades, the hat appears to be stepping in to shoulder the burden. And yet, wearing campaign gear in government facilities not only breaches protocol but also raises questions about Trump’s priorities.
Is it about making a statement? Or masking a growing insecurity?
trump reportedly spends $70,000 a year on hairstyling and spends two hours a day getting “made up” every morning. These are the results… pic.twitter.com/Pgfwd58VIS
— Kenny BooYah! 🖖🏾 (@KwikWarren) September 28, 2020
After all, Donald Trump has leaned heavily on image construction throughout his career.
But in this case, no campaign slogan or slick styling may be able to distract from what’s increasingly evident: the hair is vanishing, and the hat isn’t fooling anyone anymore.
If history is any guide, Trump will avoid publicly owning up to hair loss. More likely? It’s a bizarre workaround, maybe even a new hairstyle that generates more online buzz than any of his policies. For someone who once said his hair is better than most, accepting baldness might just be his final frontier!
