Dear Everybody:
I was going to report today on Trump’s rally, which went even worse than I’d imagined, and on the other news of the day, like the two Democratic wins in formerly Republican places (Miami and Georgia) and new developments in the Epstein files and the boat strikes, but then I read Trump’s insane, 488-word post on Truth Social which he also wrote yesterday, and decided that it, and ONLY IT, was what I needed to report on. The rest can wait till tomorrow. This post is, to my mind, just that important.
--I’ve separated it into paragraphs to make it easier for you to read, but, reading it, you need to realize that it was a single long paragraph--and maybe a single long sentence.
--There’s a lot of talk these days that Trump isn’t writing his posts--that Stephen Miller or Stephen Cheung or that young woman who follows him around with a printer is--and there’s no question some of the posts read like someone more coherent than Trump wrote them, but this one was obviously either written or dictated by him, partly because only someone who wanted to destroy him and/or his Presidency would have penned this.
--Here’s the post. Please read the whole thing:
"There has never been a president that has worked as hard as me! My hours are the longest and my results are among the best. I’ve stopped Eight Wars, saving many millions of lives in the process, created the Greatest Economy in the History of our Country, brought Business back into the United states at levels never seen before, rebuilt our Military, created the Largest Tax Cuts and Regulation Cuts, EVER, closed our open and very dangerous Southern Border, when previous Administrations were unable to do so, and created an ‘aura’ around the United States of America that has led every Country in the World to respect us more than ever before.
In addition to that, I go out of my way to do long, thorough, and very boring Medical Examinations at the Great Walter Reed National Military Center, seen and supervised by top doctors, all of whom have given me PERFECT Marks--Some have even said they have never seen such Strong Results. I do these Tests because I owe it to our Country, in addition to the Medical, I have done something that no other President has done, on three separate occasions, the last one being recently, by taking what is known as a Cognitive Examination, something which few people would be able to do very well, including those working at the New York Times, and I ACED all three of them in front of large numbers of doctors and experts, most of whom I do not know.
I have been told that few people have been able to ‘ace’ this Examination and in fact, most do very poorly, which is why many other Presidents have decided not to take it at all. Despite all of this, the time and work involved, the New York Times, and some others, like to pretend that I am ‘slowing up,’ am maybe not as sharp as I once was, or am in poor physical health, knowing that it is not true, and knowing that I work very hard, probably harder than I have ever worked before. I will know when I am ‘slowing up,’ but it’s not now!
After all of the work I have done with Medical Exams, Cognitive Exams, and everything else, I actually believe it’s seditious, perhaps even treasonous, for the New York Times, and others, to consistently do FAKE reports in order to libel and demean ‘THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.’ They are true Enemies of the People, and we should do something about it. They have inaccurately reported on all of my Election Results and, in fact, were forced to apologize on much of what they wrote. The best thing that could happen to this Country would be if The New York Times would cease publication because they are a horrible, biased, and untruthful ‘source’ of information. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
--If you missed the New York Times piece, it was VERY mild. It talked about him "slowing down" and about his falling asleep in meetings, but really tiptoed around the issue of dementia. Nothing like how they handled Biden. But it still sent Trump into a rage.
--This isn’t just a case of the Streisand Effect and unintentionally getting the New York Times piece more attention. It’s a case where his defense proves the thing he is trying to deny. As Ray Wordson said, "This only makes me more inclined to think his health is dire."
--Crooks and Liars: "Call me seditious, but that motherfucker is insane...to prove that he’s in good health mentally and physically Donald J. Trump launched a batshit crazy rant on Truth Social, calling reports of his health seditious and treasonous."
--Chris Hayes said, "I guess the President just announced he recently took his latest in a series of cognitive tests, this one in front of a room full of medical personnel observing him?"
--MeidasTouch: "Trump reveals he was recently administered another cognitive exam--a test given to patients to detect signs of dementia."
--It’s also a case of Trump’s confessing something even as he denies it, in this case that he has been given at least three cognitive tests.
--(Note: Cognitive tests are not like the LSAT. They are simple tests to detect if your brain processes are impaired. They ask you to identify animals from pictures, to spell a word backward, to remember a string of five unrelated words you were given a few minutes before, and to draw a clock face with hands showing a certain time, like 2:45.)
--Occupy Democrats: "As has been stated ad nauseum, the cognitive tests that Trump has undergone don’t gauge intelligence and so they by definition can’t be impressive and can’t be ‘ACED.’ They’re used to gauge mental deterioration and the fact that Trump is taking them at all is major cause for concern. According to neurologist Dr. Ziad Nasreddine, the man who designed the Montreal Cognitive Assessment in question, it’s supposed to ‘be easy for someone who has no cognitive impairment.’ He also stated that it is ‘not an IQ test or the level of how a person is extremely skilled or not."
--TikTok News’ John Aravisi: "This pretty much confirms Trump is having serious health problems. The first part of the tweet is a feint. The main purpose was to counter the rumors of his fading health. And mentioning that he had to go for three cognitive tests? What healthy senior has to go for three cognitive tests? I don’t think my parents ever went for one, and they lived to be 87 and 94. Everything Trump says is a lie. This is a confession."
--Spiro’s Ghost: "I know we are numb to it...but take the time to read this absolutely batshit crazy super long rant he just posted." He called it an "absolutely crazed" screed and said, "He clearly is terrified about how he is failing mentally and physically."
--Occupy Democrats: "These are the unhinged words of a lunatic."
--Dr. John Olsen: "Again. Deeply seriously mentally ill President. His rants are obvious Truth of his incapacity. 25th or Impeachment? Yup."
Roger Sollenberger: "Wonder what kind of conversation we’d be having if everyone in America were forced to read every word of this post out loud, all the way through."
And the internet had A LOT to say:
--kpeterkrog: "The fact that he admits this means he doesn’t understand what the test is for."
--highalt’lk: "The projection, delusions, and lies are all becoming intermingled. Just what you want in a President."
--Reclamation: "New proof that he is a nutcase through and through. God only knows what he will be like in three months, considering how much he has gone downhill in recent weeks. Slowing down aren’t the words for what is happening to this lunatic."
--InnerFish: "Donnie just confirmed the NYT story for them."
--Woke AF: "Just that statement alone proves how unfit he is for office."
--usagitomusashi: "The ravings of an insane, unrestrained criminal."
--Denim Tea: "...the language Donald J. Trump uses to describe his victorious testing indicates his staff is gaslighting him to believe it’s a great accomplishment as well. Then they praise him for being a good boy for taking it as requested."
--vikavina: "When I started getting peri-menopausal symptoms affecting my memory and vocabulary, I asked to see a neurologist. He gave me a cognitive test. I didn’t think it’d be so easy or for it to be over so quickly. To label it as something ‘few would be able to do’ makes me think he struggled."
--Randi Morgan Singer: "And the fact that he thinks this is some kind of badge of his brilliance only serves to prove he’s not operating with a full deck."
--Housework Makes You Ugly: "That’ll do it, just rage and scatter spittle on the Oval Office décor and we will see that your mind is completely sound."
--W.C. Fields: "Yep. Commit him. Now."
--Two Spirit: "Is it a ‘treasonous act’ for me to suggest that the Mad King is off his nut?"
Justin Amash summed it all up for me: "If anyone else wrote something like this, it would be universally acknowledged that the person is mentally unstable." (And in charge of the nuclear codes, and of invading Venezuela and blowing up fishermen and deporting US citizens.)
Keep calm and carry on,
Connie Willis