To read the full text of the podcast and the links to the quoted materials, please see:
https://erm76.substack.com/p/donald-trump-cognitive-exams-the
We're taking a different tack with this week's podcast. We'll be covering a main story and concluding with short briefs about other news events that will be part of later podcasts.
Main Story: President Trump and his self-reported ability to accurately complete a cognitive exam.
President Trump has, like other presidents, undergone medical exams that end up as news stories. But with Trump, he has a tendency to focus on the cognitive tests he's taken as part of his overall medical exam. For example, after one such test, he wrote in Truth Social that he's in “perfect” health and “aced” the test.
What's novel about Trump taking the tests and publicly posting the results is his self-praise for passing them. What's sad and insulting is his further use of the results as a platform to degrade and berate others.
President Trump's behavior patterns mirror his other actions. It's a show of bravado that he's smarter and knows more than anyone else.
Some News Stories to Watch
1 The Court struck down the Louisiana voting map for racial gerrymandering. Essentially, according to the Court, you can't gerrymander or create voting districts to ensure the equitable representation of underrepresented groups. But it's okay to gerrymander strictly for political purposes.
2 Trump as King. We've talked about the banners, each with a picture of Trump's face, on public buildings.
3. President Trump destroyed the White House's East Wing on his own volition, with the intent of building a large ballroom.
4. Trump's second term has been called the vengeance tour.
5. USAID programs saved millions of lives. But estimates indicate that over 10 million individuals may die during Trump's presidency, because of his cuts.
Notes:
* https://geriatrictoolkit.missouri.edu/cog/MoCA-8.3-English-Test-2018-04.pdf
(1) President Donald Trump.Truth Social. Jan 02, 2026. https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115825378093317232
(2) “What Trump's Cognitive Tests Can -- and Can't – Reveal,” by Judy George, MedPage Today. December 12, 2025. https://www.medpagetoday.com/neurology/generalneurology/118990
(3) MoCA Cognition. https://mocacognition.com/about/
(4) “Donald Trump Confuses Dementia Screening for 'Very Hard' IQ Test as He Brags About Results,” by Greta Bjornson, People. Updated on October 28, 2025. https://people.com/donald-trump-mistakes-dementia-screening-for-iq-test-11837935
(5) “Trump unleashes latest insult at female reporter as he says he will release MRI results,” by Mike Bedigan, Independent-US edition. December 1, 2025. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-female-reporter-insult-mri-results-b2875360.html
(6) “President Lyndon Johnson shows the press his gall bladder surgery scars. For years, this was seen as LBJ's rustic behavior,” Everett Collection. https://everett.printstoreonline.com/history/president-lyndon-johnson-shows-press-gall-bladder-surgery-scars-42493461.html#:~:text=President%20Lyndon%20Johnson%20shows%20the,seen%20as%20LBJ's%20rustic%20behavior
(7) “Former US Envoy to Ireland Brands Donald Trump a ‘schoolyard bully',” by Jack Beresford, The Irish Post. November 29, 2018. https://www.irishpost.com/life-style/former-us-envoy-ireland-brands-donald-trump-schoolyard-bully-162305
(8) “Court Further Weakens Voting Rights Act, Igniting Political Scramble,” by Abbie VanSickle, Nicholas Corasaniti and Emily Cochrane, The New York Times. April 29, 2026. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/04/29/us/supreme-court-voting-rights
(9) “Louisiana will delay House primaries after Supreme Court redistricting ruling,” by Ben Kamisar and Melanie Zanona, NBC News. April 30, 2026. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/louisiana-delay-house-primaries-supreme-court-redistricting-ruling-rcna342858
(10) “State-by-state redistricting procedures,” Ballotpedia. https://ballotpedia.org/State-by-state_redistricting_procedures
(11) “Trump's AI image of himself as Jesus-like figure follows feud with Pope Leo,” by Brad Brooks, Helen Coster and Joseph Ax, Reuters. April 13, 2026. https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/trump-posts-ai-image-himself-jesus-like-figure-drawing-outrage-2026-04-13/