Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump Again Points To Cognitive Exam To Defend Mental Fitness
The New York Times: Trump Defends His Cognitive Testing Results On Fox News. Again.
“Person. Woman. Man. Camera. TV.” President Trump again sought to showcase his mental fitness on television by reciting, over and over again in an interview broadcast on Wednesday evening, what he said was a sample cognitive testing sequence. For the better part of a month, Mr. Trump, 74, has made repeated appearances on Fox News to brag about acing a cognitive test he said he recently took at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, first with Sean Hannity and again with Chris Wallace on “Fox News Sunday.” All the while, the White House has not disclosed details about when the president underwent the testing or why. (Rogers, 7/22)
The Washington Post: Trump Keeps Boasting About Passing A Cognitive Test - But It Doesn't Mean What He Thinks It Does
As President Trump and his team began attacking former vice president Joe Biden’s mental and physical fitness this summer, Trump began pondering his own cognitive abilities. As part of his annual physical two years earlier, the president had taken the Montreal Cognitive Assessment — a 10-minute test designed to detect mild cognitive impairment such as the onset of dementia — and he believed he could weaponize his performance against Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. (Parker and Wan, 7/22)
Related KHN Story: Creator Of Brain Exam That Trump Aced Demands New Training For Testers (Aleccia, 7/29/19)
In other election-related news —
Politico: Biden: Trump Is The First Racist Elected President
Former Vice President Joe Biden claimed on Wednesday that Donald Trump is the first racist elected president. Speaking during a virtual town hall, Biden made the claim in response to racist remarks that the president has made to characterize the coronavirus pandemic. Trump and others in his circle have repeatedly referred to the virus as the “China virus,” the “kung flu” and the “Wuhan virus.” Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, said, "We’ve had racists, and they’ve existed, and they’ve tried to get elected president. But he’s the first one that has.” (Choi, 7/22)
The Hill: Obama, Biden Discuss Country's Future, Coronavirus Outbreak In Socially Distanced Sit Down
Former President Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden recently took part in a socially distanced conversation to discuss Biden's presidential bid and the future of the U.S. amid the coronavirus pandemic. Video of the conversation, which will be released in its entirety on Thursday, shows the former president and vice president arriving in masks for a sit-down conversation and talking about how the Trump administration has handled the COVID-19 outbreak. (Manchester, 7/22)
