The Alarming Signs of a President in Decline

Trump is showing confusion, fatigue, erratic behavior, and unexplained medical tests — and the White House won’t level with the public about what’s happening.

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There’s something very wrong with Donald Trump. I’m not talking about his drive toward dictatorship, although that’s a massive threat he presents every day. I’m talking about his health — mental and physical — and what his decline means for our political future.

First, as the world has seen, Trump clearly dozed off in a recent cabinet meeting just as a subservient Secretary of State Marco Rubio was lavishing him with praise. (I could use a more vulgar term, but you get the idea.) When asked about it, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt strained credulity by describing his nodding off as “listening attentively.

Then there’s the bruising on Trump’s right hand, which he has tried to conceal with makeup and, more recently, a visible bandage. The White House has attempted to explain this away as a benign condition related to preventive aspirin therapy and shaking too many hands. But rumors are running rampant that it’s a sign he is receiving infusion therapy. For what? The speculation centers on drugs intended to slow the progress of dementia.

There’s little doubt Trump is struggling mentally.

In October, during a visit to Japan, he wandered so aimlessly during a welcome ceremony that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had to intervene to guide him.

In September, he forgot when his first term began — it was 2017 — insisting it “started around 2015.”

In August, during a meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, he veered from left to right, unable to walk a straight line on the red carpet.

More recently, Trump’s rants have become even less coherent than usual, and his impulse control appears to have collapsed. He posts hundreds of messages on social media in the early morning hours, many of them frenzied defenses of his own mental state. In one hysterical post he claimed to have taken three cognitive tests, boasting, “…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.”

He has also shown a worsening inability to control his temper, lashing out at female reporters with startling rudeness — calling one “a terrible person,” another “obnoxious,” and a third “piggy.”

Then there’s the strange saga of Trump’s medical check-ups. He underwent his annual exam in April, when the White House physician reported everything was fine. Then in October, he suddenly returned to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for another set of exams. Once again, the White House insisted everything was normal, but did acknowledge that the President underwent “advanced imaging.”

That “advanced imaging” turned out to be an MRI — magnetic resonance imaging. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said he didn’t know what part of his body was scanned, or why.

“I have no idea what they analyzed,” Trump said. “But whatever they analyzed, they analyzed it well, and they said that I had as good a result as they’ve ever seen.” He also claimed to have taken an “IQ test,” which he said he aced.

In reality, Trump did not take an IQ test. He underwent a brief memory test used to screen for dementia. Can we trust his claim that he performed well? Given the source, absolutely not. And about that imaging: according to White House physician Sean Barbarella, Trump had scans of his abdomen and cardiovascular system, which he claimed were “perfectly normal.”

“The purpose of this imaging is preventive: to identify issues early, confirm overall health, and ensure he maintains long-term vitality and function,” Barbarella added. “Advanced imaging was performed because men in his age group benefit from a thorough evaluation of cardiovascular and abdominal health.”

But have you ever heard of a “preventive” MRI? I certainly haven’t — and neither have the doctors quoted by the press. MRIs are diagnostic, not routine, and they are used when physicians suspect something is wrong.

Let’s take a moment to consider the evidence. Trump is showing signs of confusion. He falls asleep in meetings. His tirades are increasing in frequency and intensity. He displays none of the habits that help older adults stave off cognitive decline — careful diet, exercise, good sleep hygiene. The bandage on his hand remains unexplained. And then there’s his claim that he had no idea why he underwent an MRI. Who climbs into one of those machines, enduring the buzzing, banging, and clattering, without being told the purpose? (of course we all know he knows, which just shows how numb we are to his lies).

Meanwhile, Trump is thinking and talking like a man preoccupied with mortality and legacy. He recently renamed the Institute of Peace after himself and is reportedly angling to attach his name to the Kennedy Center. He’s mused aloud about whether God will let him into heaven. And at the last cabinet meeting, he said, “I’ll let you know when something’s wrong… There will be some day. That’s going to happen to all of us.”

With all this evidence and a murky White House response to questions about Trump’s health, we can only guess what is happening behind the scenes. But here’s a hint: Vice President J.D. Vance recently said that thanks to “a lot of good on-the-job training,” he is ready to serve as president if needed.

How might that need arise? First, Trump could die — and if you don’t think Vance has contemplated this, think again. Second, Trump could decline so severely into dementia that concealing it becomes impossible. If that happens, pressure will mount for the cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment, which allows for the removal of an incapacitated president. The problem is that removal must be ratified by a two-thirds vote in Congress — and with Trumpism still dominant, many Republicans will want him in office as long as he’s breathing.

All of this is macabre to consider, but we’d better get used to it. Donald Trump is not well. The people around him are committed to hiding the truth. He will only get worse — and so will the lies. Yes, its dark, But let’s keep something in mind, this country WILL endure after him. Maybe a touch bruised and battered, or more than a touch, but we will survive. Then we must “think and act anew” as President Lincoln said.

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