Donald Trump has told a 10-year-old boy that if he saw him drowning, he “probably” wouldn’t try to save him. The comments came during a meeting in the Oval Office with Nathanial Rai, who was swept into the ocean and rescued by 16-year-old lifeguard Ryder Williams.
The July 25 incident was captured on video and went viral, showing Williams battling against huge, thundering waves on Seabright Beach in Santa Cruz, California as he tried to bring Rai ashore. With the aid of his fellow lifeguard Aaron Bohnen and members of the public, Williams succeeded in saving the boy from drowning and has been widely praised for his bravery.
Can Trump even swim?
Trump, on the other hand, casually told Rai that he’d have just watched him die. While smiling, Trump said, “You see something like this happen. He’s a real hero! You know when you see that… I don’t know if I’d do it. I wouldn’t, probably. You’re lucky I wasn’t… you’re lucky I wasn’t on the service that day. I don’t know.”
To be fair to Trump, he is now 80. If he charged into the raging waves in an attempt to save a young boy’s life, they’d likely be retrieving two bodies from the ocean. It is also unclear whether Trump can even swim at all. Last month, he said he didn’t own any swimwear (and hasn’t in “a long time”), musing, “I don’t know if I look good in a bathing suit.”
Williams and Rai’s rescue was brought to the president’s attention by Eric Trump, who responded to the video by saying that the lifeguard deserved “the highest civilian honor”. The primary two highest civilian decorations a president can bestow are the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Presidential Citizens Medal.
However, it doesn’t appear that Williams has officially received either, so it seems the White House recognition and Oval Office meeting with Donald Trump is going to have to suffice. Williams has also been praised by Rai’s father Sumit, who said, “What he did, I can never repay. I’m forever grateful.”
Williams seems to be the model of what people want a lifeguard to be, though the same can’t be said of the DC lifeguard who allegedly stepped away from a pool full of children “for a lunch break”, resulting in a young boy nearly dying.
What to do if you see somebody drowning
If you are put in the situation where you see someone struggling in water and feel that you need to step in, WeAquatics underlines that “jumping in the water should be your absolute last choice.”
They say to remember to ““Reach, throw, row, go with support”, i.e. try to use an instrument they can grab onto, throw that something they can use as a flotation device, if there’s a boat to row towards them, and, if entering the water is the only option, “Only get in the water if you’re a strong swimmer and you have a flotation device with you. Period.”
They add: “Many drowning deaths involve would-be rescuers who become victims themselves. Even strong swimmers have drowned trying to save others without proper technique or equipment.”
But, fortunately, when Dylan Efron – Zac Efron’s younger brother – saw some women in trouble in the water at Miami’s South Beach, he and his friends managed to save them from a “powerful” rip current.
Published: Aug 18, 2026 05:21 am