Ask A Genius 1168: McDonald’s President
Author(s): Rick Rosner and Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): Ask A Genius
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2024/11/12
*Interview conducted in October-November, 2024.*
Rick Rosner: McDonald’s has agreed to host a Trump event but has stated that it is not endorsing any political candidate. Many of their restaurants, perhaps most, are individually franchised. While I am not entirely certain, I assume some must be owned by the McDonald’s Corporation, but the majority are owned by individual franchisees. This was probably a franchisee who supports Trump and decided to close the restaurant for a day to host him in a staged event.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Did this gain him any votes?
Rosner: It seems it provided him with exposure and placed him in a situation where he was not expected to speak in front of a large crowd. Any day he avoids making unscripted remarks could be seen as beneficial for his campaign because, at this point, he tends to make unpredictable statements that his team struggles to manage.
The event gave him visibility and helped portray him as a “man of the people” without any controversial comments. His team has been reducing his interviews. He famously took what he referred to as a cognitive test, which was actually a screening for early dementia, and reportedly performed well on it.
However, this test was conducted in 2020. A lot can happen in over three years, particularly given Trump’s hospitalization for COVID-19, which lasted several days. COVID-19, especially severe cases requiring hospitalization, has been associated with potential long-term effects on cognitive health. According to some studies, COVID-19 can contribute to cognitive decline. Therefore, it is possible that his cognitive state has changed since the test.
Furthermore, Trump has not released recent medical records or results from any physical exams conducted after his presidency. It is conceivable that these could reveal early signs of cognitive decline, though perhaps not enough to be classified as dementia. Observations of his current speech and behavior suggest some change. During his presidency, I did not find sufficient evidence to support the notion of cognitive impairment. Both sides of the political spectrum often accuse their opponents—Trump and Biden included—of mental decline.
During Trump’s time in office, some commentators speculated he had frontotemporal dementia, an early-onset form that affects behavior and decision-making due to changes in the frontal lobe, which regulates self-control and judgment.
The claim that Trump has frontotemporal dementia was largely based on his posture and behavior, with some pointing out his forward-leaning stance.
However, it is more likely that his posture is due to the one-and-a-half-inch lifts in his shoes. Trump, who is about 6’2″, has been reported to use shoe lifts that might make him lean forward slightly. It is difficult to say definitively, but over three years have passed since he left office, and there may be observable changes in his cognitive health.
This decline, however, may not impact his support base. Trump’s father, Fred Trump, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at age 85, and former President Ronald Reagan was diagnosed with the same condition at 83. The Alzheimer’s Association notes that symptoms can begin to manifest up to nine years before an official diagnosis.
So, it’s not inconceivable that if you do the math on Trump’s family history and assume he might follow the same path as his father, Trump could have started showing symptoms as early as 75. Trump is now 78. I would say he is in worse physical shape compared to his dad, who was quite lean. Although Trump doesn’t drink—unlike if his father had—his overall health is probably a more significant factor.
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