There is an extremely cumbersome process to run for President. While some of it, specifically the nastiness and politics of personal destruction, are self-imposed by campaigns, much of it is by necessity. The position of President is extremely critical to our nation, serving as leader of the country, chief executive of the government, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, head of state with respect to relations with other countries, and of course the source of all federal judicial nominations to include the Supreme Court. There really isn’t anything the President does not directly impact. Consequently, the process to elect the President is designed to completely and thoroughly vet those who choose to run. By the end of the campaign, the American electorate should be sufficiently informed as to the candidates’ health, finances, conflicts, policy priorities, governing philosophy, etc.
Candidate Donald Trump denied the American people the vetting process demanded of ALL prior candidates, certainly in the modern era. He was elected despite that, not because of it as some administration individuals mistakenly say. He refused to disclose any tax returns. The American people have the right to know the amount and sources of income of anyone wishing to serve as president as well as the taxes they paid and the potential source of any conflicts of interest. Although he tried to use the excuse of being audited, that is simply not a valid excuse. Every president is audited annually but still discloses their returns. Nothing about an audit prevents or even discourages disclosure. Therefore, the only rational conclusion is that Donald Trump has reason to hide this information from the American people. Similarly, while all previous candidates had a full medical examination and provided a doctor’s report attesting to their health status. Donald Trump refused to do this as well. He had a private, unknown individual handwrite a short paragraph that he was in good health. This was not only entirely inadequate, but also inaccurate. Donald Trump is not the healthiest man to ever run for President… The American people were denied important information about his physical and mental ability to serve as president. As with his tax returns, President Trump continues to refuse to get an official, proper medical examination and provide a valid doctor’s report.
Let’s focus on the President’s considerable health concerns as they impact his performance in office. At age 71, Donald Trump was the oldest individual ever first elected as President. Ronald Reagan was older in office, but he was not yet 71 when first elected. To be fair, there are many individuals in their 70s who lead extremely active, capable, productive lives. However, there is reason to be cautious at that age based on genetics, lifestyle, and the likelihood of the onset of certain conditions. Based on appearances (because he refuses to release any medical reports), this president seems to be the most overweight since Taft. We have certainly seen evidence of his temperament and cognition. The President’s words as well as deeds carry great power and can have incredible impact at home and abroad. Thus, it is crucial to know that the president is mentally and physically capable to perform his duties.
To that end, many of the White House staff as well as notable GOP members of Congress, have been derelict in their duties to the government, the Constitution, and the American people. There are serious questions about President Trump’s health, more so his mental health, and those in official positions have a duty of candor to the American people. Remember covfeffe? What exactly happened to the President’s cognitive functioning in the middle of that tweet? Add that to the speeches wherein he began slurring his words. Look at his extreme overreaction to even the slightest negative comment. They brush it off by saying he is a “counter-puncher.” That is fine, but the evidence suggests he cannot control his temper or reactions. Have you noticed every time the President speaks he includes comments that whatever the topic, he broke a record, made history, or was the best ever at it? President Trump recently stated he was the most informed about legislation coming from Congress, better than any of his predecessors, and that he understood every aspect of all the bills. Thankfully he did not have to pass a quiz on the bills… It is safe to say based on the lack of any substantive discussion of any of the bills at any time from the President that he was not particularly well informed and certainly not above the level of his predecessors.
The President has been insisting that he broke the record for most legislative achievements in the first year. Once again, the facts clearly show just the opposite. Even if we re-defined the criteria to be most favorable to President Trump, he still falls behind his predecessors. Not good or bad, just the truth. President Trump also appeared to obsess over being on Time Magazine’s cover. He lied about the magazine contacting him about making him their person of the year for 2017. Time did not do so and never does so as a matter of practice. In the past, the President even went so far as to create a phony Time Magazine cover with him on it and hang it around his country club as an actual accomplishment. There is a real problem here with illusions of grandeur and self-absorption that question his mental state.
President Trump’s inauguration was not well attended, and the evidence clearly demonstrated that truth. The Obama inauguration had a much larger crowd, again clearly backed up with proof. Nevertheless, President Trump forced his staff (I felt sorry for Sean Spicer at the time) to repeatedly insist it was the biggest crowd in history. Similarly, the President attempted to boast of his electoral win, claiming it was the largest electoral college victory in recent years and that he won the popular vote. President Trump did win the electoral vote and therefore the Presidency. However, it was a closer electoral vote than other recent elections and he lost the popular vote by over 3 million votes! Spicer and Sarah Huckabee Sanders were forced on many occasions to not only defend the President’s lies or misinformation, but to emphatically double-down and argue they were true. Kellyanne Conway’s assertion of “alternative facts” was not only a gross departure from the decorum and honesty expected of any administration, it was an example of the lengths White House staff must go to assuage President Trump’s ego, insecurity, or need for extreme self-aggrandizement.
The GOP Congress was extremely proud of the recent tax cut and gathered at the White House to celebrate. Fair enough. Time will tell whether this will be a positive or negative for the country. What was notable about the celebration was what was said. There was no mention of the provisions of the legislation or any other substance. In an absolutely shameless and undeserved series of ass-kissing remarks, GOP leaders including Speaker Ryan, Leader McConnell, Senator Hatch, Rep McCarthy, and several others gave President Trump the most extreme, over the top accolades. Anyone who watched, including some in attendance and Republicans who supported the tax bill, conceded the ridiculousness of the moment. Rather than act professionally or honorably, these leaders chose to shed their dignity and integrity to play President Trump’s game. He demands this type of sycophancy from those who wish to benefit from his attention and support. This type of narcissism or whatever it is, is evidence the President lacks the capacity for the office. Unfortunately, it also calls into question the trustworthiness and character of those other leaders.
Of most concern, recent reports verified that the White House staff does not present the President with substantive information, including critical information to his decision-making, because the information will either upset him and/or he lacks the ability to comprehend it. This is beyond dangerous. We routinely have a President who, according to his own staff, gets too upset to receive important information and who lacks the ability (or perhaps the willingness) to understand it. President Trump is making decisions, setting policy, representing the nation, and speaking publicly based on inaccurate and incomplete data; data that is readily known and available to his staff but intentionally withheld from him. Maybe we could accept this if it was pertaining to one issue or if it became necessary in the waning weeks of the President’s term. However, this is the consistent practice across the spectrum of issues and we are in the President’s first year in office with at least three to go. If this or any President is unable or unwilling to handle important issues and information, the President is unfit for office and incapable of serving. After all, he does control the nuclear arsenal as well as other means of force.
Chief of Staff John Kelly is primarily responsible for the information flow to the President. He is derelict in his duties to the nation and the oath he took by maintaining this practice of limiting information to President Trump. The shame is that he knows better. As a career leader and decision-maker, he understands the value and necessity of complete information when making decisions and setting policy. He also understands the oath he took and his obligation to the nation, yet he inexcusably maintains this practice of routinely sheltering the President, making the President’s decisions and statements inaccurate and unreliable. The same applies to Secretary of Defense James Mattis. He knows the national security impact of the issues he presents to President Trump and the importance of the commander-in-chief being properly informed. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is tasked to outright lie to the national and international media every day and she shamelessly complies without a shred of dignity. Yet these senior staff members all remain silent. They and Congressional leaders commit a fraud upon the American people by quietly manipulating the President in this manner and failing to take action about the President’s condition.
Consider the roles of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. Neither have any experience whatsoever in government, public service, military service, foreign policy, or anything relevant to a presidential administration. As his close family, they clearly have a better understanding of the President’s health, behavior, temperament, etc. The hope was they could control or limit his outbursts and help him focus on issues. Better put, perhaps they were there to protect the President. Their role was to shield his cognitive issues from discovery and disclosure to the American people and to minimize the impact on his ability to lead or govern. The American people deserve better and deserve to know the truth about our President’s fitness and ability to serve in office. Is he delusional? Does he suffer from bouts of dementia or other cognitive decline? Is it more simply anger and impulse control? The people have a right to know and the country needs a leader free from such doubt.