Hillary’s health, again

Last updated on: September 12, 2016 at 8:37 am by Jane the Actuary

Hillary’s health, again 2016-09-12T08:37:29-06:00 Jane the Actuary

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First of all, some background and a few quick links to get readers up to speed as needed:

Midmorning yesterday we first saw reports of an unusual incident at a 9/11 commemoration in New York. The first tweets were merely that Hillary Clinton left unexpectedly, and an eyewitness said there appeared to be a health scare. Then two videos surfaced, here in an article at The Federalist. She is leaning on a pillar, then needs to be helped/carried into the waiting van, and appears to fall/faint before Secret Service or others completely surround her.

Shortly afterwards, the Clinton campaign announced she was “overheated” and taken to Chelsea’s New York apartment. And only later did they announce that she had been diagnosed with pneumonia, though NBC News, at least, informs us that it’s the so-called “walking pneumonia” in which it’s just fine to go about your business as long as you take your medicine. And she’s now cancelled a fundraiser that had been scheduled in California, opting to literally phone it in, instead.

Now, it wouldn’t surprise you to learn that this isn’t the end of the story for some on the far right. The website Dangerandplay.com tells us that pneumonia is a complication of Parkinson’s, and points to a photo on twitter which the author interprets as a nurse administering a “squeeze the doctor’s fingers” neurological test. Zero Hedge is skeptical that this is pneumonia at all: “If Hillary has pneumonia, and passed out at an event, – why was she taken to her daughter’s apartment and not a hospital? After all, she was as of today aware of her Friday diagnosis. After coming out of Chelsea’s apartment, why did Hillary says she “felt great” – as of this morning she was aware she had Pneumonia; why not admit the truth for once to the public?” (A commenter further says, “She was unable to initiate movement in her legs. That is some nasty dehydration. It’s fucking Parkinsons. A little Sinemet boost at Chelsey’s and she was good to go.)

But that’s not all! How did Clinton recover so quickly at Chelsea’s apartment? According to conspiracy theorists, it’s not because she rested and drank fluids. It’s because the woman leaving that apartment, announcing to everyone, “I feel great,” hugging a small girl and getting into the waiting van, was not Clinton at all, but a body double — these theorists (and not just at this site — google it yourself) dissect the facial features, the hair style, even the shoulder she carries her purse on, and cite the fact that, in this instance, the Secret Service is not anywhere near her.

Oh, and I shouldn’t forget the “mysterious metal object”! Infowars (and others) cite a clip that appears to show something falling from her pants:

Internet sleuths noticed a mysterious piece of metal falls out of Hillary Clinton’s pant leg while she was collapsing and being dragged into her SUV.
Is it part of a catheter? A clip which holds her ostomy bag? Part of a brace to help her stand?
No one knows yet, but it’s quite odd.

So, look, I don’t care for any of this, but the fact that the campaign began with “overheating” before, much later, blaming pneumonia for the fall/fainting, is disturbing. (Oh, and did I mention that her supporters then spent the evening tweeting that Clinton’s schedule in the face of pneumonia shows a heroic determination that makes her more, not less qualified?) There is a fairly significant likelihood that there’s more going on than the Clinton campaign is letting on.

The September 11th commemorations remind us that the president’s job may, in its day-to-day peacetime routine, be relatively forgiving of periodic ailments — does it really matter whether you give your speech a couple days later, or change the venue from a high school gym in a swing state to the rose garden, or whether you postpone meetings with your policy specialists in trying to move forward a legislative proposal or an administrative action? Reality is, for all that Obama is accused of being detached from the work of the president — preferring to golf and hobnob with celebrities — I’ve never seen any claims that his failure to buckle down and get to work, rather than fundamental policy disagreements, is the core problem with his presidency. But when a 3 AM phone call-type event occurs, we need a president that’s able to manage the intensity of the situation.

Yes, we have had ill presidents before.

Roosevelt died in office, and Truman took on the duties of president in a seemingly-seamless way. And, sure, we won World War II despite an ill president — but at the same time, would Roosevelt have been better able to prevent the ultimate Soviet take-over of Eastern Europe had he been fitter? No way of knowning. And, though there is general consensus that Truman’s decision to use the atom bomb was the right call, surely it would have been better if the man making that call had been the elected president.

Kennedy? Well, it’s now known (e.g., this ABC News article) that Kennedy had serious health issues, and was on a whole host of medications. The author states, “there is no indication that the medications impaired JFK’s judgment during crucial moments in U.S. history” — but that’s all a matter of hindsight. Might a different set of actions have not set in motion the events of the Cuban Missile Crisis in the first place? Could a different set of decisions results in a successful Bay of Pigs invasion, or none at all?

And there are unanswered questions about whether Reagan’s eventual Alzheimer’s diagnosis was already manifesting itself during his time in office; Reagan’s son claimed this was the case, but there are no particular actions that can be pointed to as proof, and, in any case, foreign-policy wise, the legacy of the later years of his presidency is undeniable, with the summits with Gorbachev leading to arms control agreements.

A president’s health is a big deal. What’s more, the American people have the right to be governed by the president they elect, not by de facto regents who control decision-making behind the scenes. And, to be honest, assessing the various alternative scenarios at this point, I’m pretty much OK with a “President Kaine,” all things considered, especially if the alternative is a president who is at risk of facing dual health and foreign policy crises.

Or maybe it’s a big nothingburger — but I’d be much more comfortable if we didn’t have to rely on Clinton campaign sources for assurance.

image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AHillary_Clinton_Testimony_to_House_Select_Committee_on_Benghazi.png; By C-SPAN [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

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