Last November, President Donald Trump was whisked away to Walter Reed Medical Center for an unannounced visit. The Trump administration has claimed that the visit was merely part of a routine check-up for the president, but, besides their general lack of credibility, the visit was not announced ahead of time, as is routine, and recent reporting reveals that Vice President Mike Pence was apparently on standby to temporarily assume the powers of the presidency in case Trump needed to be put under anesthesia. On Tuesday, Trump melted down on Twitter over the reporting about the episode, complaining that “they are trying to say that your favorite President, me… suffered a series of mini-strokes.” It’s unclear who exactly Trump is referring to, because a consensus is that something is wrong, not that he had “a series of mini-strokes” specifically.
Describing Trump’s unexpected November 2019 visit to Walter Reed Medical Center, he reports the White House wanted Mike Pence “on standby to take over the powers of the presidency temporarily if Trump had to undergo a procedure that would have required him to be anesthetized.”
— Adam Goldman (@adamgoldmanNYT) August 31, 2020
He tweeted:
‘It never ends! Now they are trying to say that your favorite President, me, went to Walter Reed Medical Center, having suffered a series of mini-strokes. Never happened to THIS candidate – FAKE NEWS. Perhaps they are referring to another candidate from another Party!’
It never ends! Now they are trying to say that your favorite President, me, went to Walter Reed Medical Center, having suffered a series of mini-strokes. Never happened to THIS candidate – FAKE NEWS. Perhaps they are referring to another candidate from another Party!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 1, 2020
It’s unclear who even alleged that Trump had “a series of mini-strokes” in the first place. Where did he get that idea? Is a series of mini-strokes something that his doctors thought may have happened to him? There’s no evidence supporting Trump’s flippant suggestion that Joe Biden may have suffered strokes. It’s always amazing when folks try and characterize Biden as the candidate who is “weak” and struggles to stay on track, when Trump’s the guy who once publicly insisted that he’s “never understood wind,” among other greatest hits.
We are entitled to know about the health of the president.
Would Trump even be well enough to serve a second term? https://t.co/teumiIVPQn
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) August 31, 2020
As MSNBC host Rachel Maddow put it this week, discussing the latest reporting about the Walter Reed visit:
‘Whatever it was, it was serious enough that the vice president was warned to be on standby [because] the president might have to be under general anesthesia, which would occasion Mike Pence having to temporarily become president. And to state the obvious, that is not something that happens when you go in for a segment of your physical. If you had to go under general anesthesia to have a physical, nobody would have an annual physical.’
On Tuesday, Trump also tweeted about a recent National Guard deployment in Wisconsin and efforts to restart college football.
Heading to Kenosha, Wisconsin, to thank Law Enforcement and the National Guard for a job well done. The Violence stopped six days ago, the moment the Guard entered the picture. Thank you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 1, 2020
Had a very productive conversation with Kevin Warren, Commissioner of the Big Ten Conference, about immediately starting up Big Ten football. Would be good (great!) for everyone – Players, Fans, Country. On the one yard line!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 1, 2020
Check out Twitter’s response below:
