No, not the
one in 1972. I'm talking about the one this year.
Every year Bush has had his annual physical in early August. This year he's postponed it until after the election. The official story is that he's too busy, but he was on vacation in early August, just like every year.
Why did Bush skip his 2004 physical?
We know that Bush believes he's unaccountable to the American public. If that's the only reason, that's bad enough. But the more likely reason is that he's hiding a known medical problem.
Is it related to his remarkable cognitive decline over the last ten years--as noted by James Fallows in his July Atlantic piece and startlingly clear from the 1994 video of a quick-witted, eloquent, informed Bush at his debate with Ann Richards?
Bush retains the well-developed vocabulary of earlier years, but the mental acuity has faded, to the point he gets visibly excited when he thinks of a joke or retort.
History and Symptoms
Does he have a serious medical condition which is related to his regular falls onto his face--the pretzel incident, the Segway, the bicycling falls?
Is it related to his declining posture?
In the first debate, Bush gave a strangely disconnected and subdued performance, using the same brief phrases repeatedly.
Bush's tooth-grinding, violent outbursts, and nervous tics, his avoidance of people's names, and his plethora of Bushisms in the second debate provide further evidence for a disturbing medical problem.
In the third debate his lifelong left-side facial droop was more pronounced than ever, he had visible drool, and again spoke with difficulty and with erratic emotion.
In every debate a bulge under his jacket was obvious. Was he wearing a back brace? A portable defibrillator?
Following the debates Bush's campaign schedule has been inexplicably light, spending much of his time at the White House.
See also Doctor Zebra's medical history of GWB.
Potential Diagnoses
He is possibly suffering presenile dementia or Korsakoff syndrome, due to his long-term alcoholism.
Chronic liver disease is possible, though the purported evidence of spider angiomas is officially actinic keratoses (sun damage).
Managed tardive dyskinesia due to overexposure to neuroleptic drugs is another possible (related) diagnosis.
Capitol Hill Blue reported in July 2004 using anonymous sources that Bush suffers depression and paranoia managed by anti-depressants adminstered by his physicians.
There is a good amount of (idle) speculation that Bush's demeanor in the second debate is due to a stimulant like cocaine, which he used in earlier years. I would think prescription drugs with similar effects much more likely. All speculation aside, the crucial question remains:
Why did Bush skip his 2004 physical?