Another clean bill of health for the man in the Oval Office. This time from Dr Sean Conley, who declared Donald Trump in 'excellent health' after what we are told was a 'comprehensive' check-up. The report landed with a thud in Westminster. Not because anyone here is worried about Trump's cholesterol. But because it highlights a fundamental truth about these rituals. They are as much about optics as medicine.
Let's be clear. The presidential physical is a political minefield. Always has been. Think back to Wilson's stroke. Kennedy's Addison's disease. Reagan's bullet wound. The public was told what the public needed to hear. The subtext has always been: 'The man at the top is fit to govern.' Full stop.
Trump, of course, weaponises this. His obsession with vigour is legendary. The 'stamina' tweets. The 'I'm the healthiest president in history' boasts. So when Conley declares him 'excellent', it is not a medical bulletin. It is a campaign leaflet.
But here is the rub. The format of these checks is deeply flawed. They are not independent. The doctor works for the President. He is appointed by the President. His job partly depends on the President. Conflict of interest? You bet. And the media plays along. We report the headline. We move on. We rarely dig into what 'excellent health' actually means. Does it include cognitive tests? Mental fitness? The checks are physical. The job is mental.
Think back to 2018. Trump's first physical. Conley reported a 'perfect' score on a cognitive test. Then it emerged the test was the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Basic stuff. Naming animals. Drawing a clock. The bar was low. The media missed the cynicism.
Now compare this to the UK. No formal system. Prime Ministers get NHS check-ups like anyone else. Or they don't. Tony Blair famously avoided them. Boris Johnson left hospital after COVID looking gaunt. No official update. The public relies on chance photos and 'well-placed sources'.
So what is the solution? Full transparency. Independent doctors. Public release of all data. Let the press look at the numbers. Let medical experts interpret them. That is unlikely. Politicians hate losing control of the narrative. The White House wants a headline. 'President fit for duty.' Not a debate.
The real question for Trump: is this a campaign launch? Expect him to use the report as proof he can handle the rigours of another term. His team will brief that he is 'stronger than ever'. The media will ask if Biden is too old. The health check will have done its job.
For now, Conley has given his verdict. The crowd applauds. The doubts linger. The game continues. And we, in the Lobby, watch the spin unfold.
