On October 2, 1919, President Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke. For the remaining 17 months of his presidency, until March 4, 1921, he made four public appearances, all ceremonial, while looking visibly frail. Rumor and history suggest that his wife, Edith, was de facto the acting President.
Is America on the verge of more of the same?
Trump's public calendar is sparse — and the few events he has seem designed to minimize his physical effort. Last Tuesday, he addressed America's senior military officers in a low-energy event. He kept them waiting 23 minutes. Perhaps it was the stagecraft of a man who doesn't value others' time. Or maybe he needed the break to get his head and body right. Regardless, he slouched across the stage with the vim of an inebriate at closing time. Then he clutched the podium for support while he droned.
Before today, the only events on his public schedule were a dinner with JD Vance and a military inspection. On Saturday, he played golf. On Sunday, he visited the USS George Bush to watch America's woke Navy show that even with women and LGBTQ in the ranks, they can still kick ass.
A common thread among these brief appearances is his shambling gait and careful steps. He can stand, shake hands, clap people on the back, smile, and shmooze. However, the spark is gone, as is his lateral movement.
On Monday afternoon, he conducted a brief, unscheduled press Q&A in the Oval Office — while sitting at his desk. On Tuesday, he held a 20-minute bilateral meeting with Canada's Prime Minister, Mark Carney, during which he mainly sat. And then they had lunch.
He no longer conducts daily telephone interviews. When was the last time he called into Fox News? Over the weekend, he fueled speculation that he's in a tailspin when he did an interview with Jake Tapper by text. Bizarre.
His health is so bad that even his doctors — who for years have proclaimed him the healthiest man ever to be President — had to admit he has chronic venous insufficiency. The condition is not necessarily that serious. However, because the doctors announced something was not 100%, the rational thinker should assume that, in this case, it is. Especially, as now there is evident bruising on his right hand.
However, in some ways, Trump's physical and mental decline makes the administration even more dangerous. It is evident that Trump has entrusted day-to-day operations to zealots who have no boundaries — including Stephen Miller, Laura Loomer, and Tom Homan, among others. It's reminiscent of Ronald Reagan's second term, as the aging President succumbed to Alzheimer's. And was divorced from the day-to-day.
Worse, Trump’s cabinet contains no dissenting voice. There is no scenario in which they would invoke the 25th Amendment.
He is also free from the threat of a successful impeachment. Even if the Democrats win the House in 2026 and send articles of impeachment to the Senate, they will never have the 67 votes needed to find Trump guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors.
The only silver lining is that he could become so incapacitated that he will no longer be able to whip up the base personally. He once used public rallies to bask in the cult's adoration. But he has had only four since the inauguration — with none since July 3.
Trump apologists may point to moments when the dotard seems his vigorous old self. However, anyone with older relatives knows, there are good days and bad. And as the clock ticks unstoppably onwards, the bad increasingly outweighs the good.
There is no shortage of wannabe fascists in the administration and the congressional GOP However, as evil as they are, their power is greatest when Trump harnesses and focuses it. If he gets to a point where he can no longer effectively threaten and cajole, then perhaps there will be a crack in the dam. Again, Wilson provides a roadmap. He negotiated the creation of the League of Nations, but after his stroke, he lacked the vigor to convince Congress to vote in favor of the US joining it.
Sadly, regardless of Trump's health, the damage to America's institutions, economy, civility, unity, and soft power will continue. In the best-case scenario, it will only be on the low end of the range of awful possibilities.
