Democracy is based on the concept that the people have the right to determine by their vote who will be their leader. The U.S. Constitution’s requirements to be President are that the person be 35 years or older, a natural born citizen of the United States, and a resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years. The judgment for further qualifications is up to the voters.
Candidate Trump’s mental health has become a public issue. Trump, at age 78, is now the oldest major party nominee for President in history. His recent speeches are more incoherent and rambling. Trump’s niece, Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, wrote a book identifying disorders she believes he has. According to a recent article in the New York Times, “Trump has seemed confused, forgetful, incoherent, and disconnected from reality lately.”
“Trump is never wrong,” Trump said recently, adding “I am never, ever wrong.” That is not true. During his previous presidential campaign, he said he would eliminate the federal deficit, which he did not do, but actually increased the debt by $6.7 trillion while in office, the most in any four-year period under any previous president. He also said he would get Mexico to pay for the border wall. It never happened.
The importance of the mental condition acceptance of a presidential candidate is left to the voters. In the case of Trump, we can only judge his mental decline revealed by his public words and actions. He will not provide a public medical report by a competent and politically unbiased doctor, despite the fact that his predecessors have done so.
Gerry Snyder
Simsbury/Ely