SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2026
This is the gamble we've chosen: It's as we noted in this week's reports:
In Tuesday's front-page overview for the New York Times, Peter Baker quoted recent comments about President Trump's "mental health"—comments about the president's "psychological fitness."
Baker quoted a large number of elected officials, podcasters and lawyers. But he didn't quote any remarks by any medical specialists—by any "mental health professionals."
Similarly, Lawrence O'Donnell reminisced on several occasions this week about his past interviews with such medical specialists on his Last Word program.
That said, those interviews, infrequent and limited as they were, took place during the president's first term—from 2017 on through January 2021. O'Donnell conducted no interviews with medical specialists on this week's Last Word programs.
Even now, in the face of the growing concerns reported by Baker, it seems that O'Donnell no longer conducts such interviews. As he reminisced this week about past interviews, he didn't explain why that it is.
Where have all the medical specialists gone? Why didn't Baker quote any such observers? Why didn't O'Donnell quote such current observers? Why doesn't O'Donnell conduct such interviews at this point in time?
We can't answer those very good questions. We'll offer these speculations:
It could be that the president's various lawsuits have convinced news orgs like MS NOW that such interviews can no longer take place. It may also be that medical specialists—some, though plainly not all—have become reluctant to offer assessments about the president's mental health or about his possible cognitive decline.
It may be that an org like the New York Times is also gripped by such concerns. It may be that Baker wanted to quote such medical specialists as Mary Trump and Dr. Vin Gupta (among several others), but editors refused to let that occur.
Is something (seriously) wrong with President Trump? If so, that is of course a personal tragedy. But is something wrong with President Trump in a way which may be extremely dangerous, given his role in the world?
With regard to such important questions, Baker quoted the nutcase Alex Jones. He quoted no medical specialists!
For his part, O'Donnell played tape of what was said by a medical specialist in 2017 and in 2021. He didn't mention things which have been said by medical specialists in just the past few weeks.
We see no sign that these apparent blackout policies are going to change. All in all, it must be said:
All in all, for better or worse, this is the gamble we've chosen!
Starting Monday: A great deal remains to be said
Try thinking for a living, Bob.
BalasPadamDo you really expect the NY Times to expose themselves as the nation's leading publication, which spent a decade treating a person in obvious mental decline as a viable candidate for the President of the United States of America?
Maybe after that they can expose themselves for treating the existence of 5 trans student athletes like the world was ending, while oligarchs stole the Treasury.
Pope Leo called Trump soft on crime for his pardoning of the January 6th snowflakes.
BalasPadamBob would go to a 10 alarm fire and ask repeatedly why a firefighter wasn't weighing in on what was happening.
BalasPadamSomerby woulds see the names of all those Republican politicians in the Epstein Files, and spend a good six months or more discussing Trump's mental health status.
PadamDemocrats in Congress have called for a cognitive evaluation of the president and a report to the House. Somerby never mentions that. It is the first step toward use of Article 25 to remove the president for incompetence to do the job. It is as if Somerby doesn't know such efforts exist.
BalasPadamWhy would Somerby insist on public statements by specialists, reported by the media, when Raskin and the House are doing their job to evaluate the president's mental health? Does Somerby think the American people need to be informed of the president's cognitive deficits? The behavior itself, exhibited by President Trump, is already causing alarm, even among Trump's loyal followers. That is the point of Baker's essay. If Congress does move to remove Trump, the American people need to be mentally prepared for that event, and Baker is providing that preparation.
Remote diagnosis, aside from being disallowed by the ethics of psychiatrists and psychologists, will not be as convincing to the American public as the accounts of weirdness told by those who work closely with Trump. Their concerns take precedence over speculation that will seem biased or self-serving without corroboration. If and when Trump's own doctors provide an evaluation demanded by Congress, the concerns of Trump supporters will bolster those findings and action based upon them. Bandy Lee just sounds like a partisan Trump enemy. The concerns of Trump supporters about his behavior carry more weight.
But I don't believe Somerby really wants to see Trump removed from office. I don't believe he cares about protecting our nation from Trump's malfeasance. He has expressed few concerns about Trump's actual behavior and is advocating loudly for an ineffective approach to dealing with Trump's misbehavior. We have remedies in our Constitution. Instead, Somerby argues for an act that will do nothing to help this situation. Why? I see no good reason except that Somerby does not want things to improve -- he is trying to protect Trump's administration and Trump by advocating an ineffective measure that would mainly embarrass the Democrats and undermine the legitimate request for an evaluation by Trump's own doctors, followed by a report to Congress.
https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/25th-amendment-bill-raskin-trump-removal
PadamSome believe Raskin's proposal is a distraction from the correct remedy, which is to impeach and remove the president:
"Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., together with 50 Democratic co-sponsors, has reintroduced his bill to create a “Commission on Presidential Capacity” under Section 4 of the 25th Amendment. It is being framed as a response to the crisis of a president who threatened to annihilate an entire civilization, who shares renderings of himself as Jesus Christ while feuding with the pope and who posts snuff videos on social media — to name the highlights from just the past couple of weeks.
In other words, the most powerful man in the world appears to be manifestly insane. It’s not great. But this proposal is misguided on the details, and more importantly, a distraction from what Congress can and should do: impeach Donald Trump and remove him from office.
This is not a new idea from Raskin. He first proposed essentially the same bill in 2017, and again in 2020 during Trump’s bout with Covid. I wrote about it at the time for the Cato Institute, and my objections have not changed. If anything, the current situation makes the flaws in this approach more glaring."
https://www.ms.now/opinion/trump-jamie-raskin-25th-amendment
Somerby has discussed neither of these approaches, which have been discussed by the mainstream press.
I have read medical specialists discussing Trump's deterioration in various press sources. Somerby seems to be playing a game in which he picks someone who is not talking about Trump's mental health and then claims that no one has been talking about it. That is a lie. Just because Baker didn't, doesn't mean no one has.
BalasPadamMeanwhile, the New York Times continues its attacks on Democrats. Every day there are stories about Democrats in disarray, the inability of Democrats to get our act together, the failure of one kind or another of Democrats to address its party's needs, etc etc etc. Somerby seems to not notice that the mainstream press is biased and not blue at all, but is carrying water for the right. This is what has happened during every national election but Somerby appears blind to it, while mislabeling the mainstream media as blue.
https://presswatchers.org/2024/10/new-york-times-opens-the-media-floodgates-on-stories-about-trumps-mental-unfitness/
PadamHere is a summary by AI of press discussion of Trump's mental health:
"Key Media Sources and Context (As of April 2026):
The New York Times: Has extensively covered the debate over Trump's mental fitness, with articles discussing "signs consistent with dementia and cognitive decline" and questioning his mental acuity, notes a report from PressWatchers.
CNN: Has highlighted moments where Trump appeared to doze off during meetings and reported on claims from critics regarding his mental sharpness.
The Washington Post: Reported on instances of Trump appearing to doze off during meetings and covered public discussions regarding his mental state.
The Independent: Reported on experts suggesting potential narcissism and a "lack of empathy" based on his social media posts.
The Hill: An opinion contributor discussed his "erratic conduct" and noted that concerns about his mental health are not just from political opponents, but also from those who once supported him.
New York Magazine: Noted reports of "erratic" behavior and online activity.
The Daily Beast/Other Outlets: Have published in-depth examinations from doctors regarding alleged "cognitive decline" and "paranoid behavior".
Key Contributors to the Narrative:
Medical/Psychological Experts: Various professionals have been cited, including Dr. John Gartner and Dr. Bandy Lee, discussing potential cognitive decline.
Political Figures: Several Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. Jamie Raskin, Sen. Chuck Schumer, and Rep. Ted Lieu, have publicly raised questions about his cognitive state.
Trump's Niece: Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, has discussed his psychological traits.
Defenders of the President often push back against these claims, arguing that what critics describe as mental decline is actually a deliberate political strategy. "
If AI can find these discussions, why can't Somerby?
On the other hand, Somerby is doing a fantastic job distracting from the Epstein Files.
PadamHere is Katy Tur commenting on Trump's cognition in an offhand way. This kind of remark will help the public accept the idea that Trump is past it, when the wheels turn and Trump is finally removed from office:
BalasPadam"The great Big, Beautiful Bill also slashed taxes on millions of Americans," said Trump in the clip. "Small businesses, including restaurants, dry cleaners, corner stores. What is the corner store? I've never heard that term. I know what a corner store is, but I've never heard it described as a corner store. Who the hell wrote that? Please?"
"There is a corner store or bodega on almost every block in this city," said Tur. "Sometimes at both ends. They've been here forever. How does Donald Trump not know it? Could he possibly be that insulated, that out of touch? I guess it could be something else. A loss of memory, perhaps." [MS NOW]
Did Somerby call for "carefully selected" specialists to evaluate whether Biden was too old? I don't remember. I think he just called Biden too old, every chance he got, and pointed to the deep fakes without telling us they were fraudulent. I don't recall Somerby ever using the word gerontologist, much less quoting one about the differences between dementia and normal aging.