John McCain Goes For A Physical: "I'm as Healthy as the Economy!"

This weekend brought word that John McCain will be convening a panel of his doctors next month, in an effort to help assuage concerns about his age and health. Of course, McCain's prognosis at that press event is a foregone conclusion: clean bill of health, sound of mind and body. Such an event seems eerily similar to one of the current administration's periodically scheduled reports of the trajectory of the Iraq, where generals and advisers, chosen for their like-mindedness, give stoically rosy assessments of the war. You can hear it now, "Senator McCain is the picture of physical fitness!"; and then, under their collective breath, "...for a man his age."

That may be well and true, but if so, McCain can't blame his recent (and frequent) campaign-trail Iraq war gaffes on a deteriorating mind. Which means that instead he's simply misinformed and does not understand the war we're waging or whom we're waging it against. McCain's campaign has maintained that these blunders were merely examples of the Senator misspeaking. But these aren't the type of innocent stump speech lapses like when Senator Clinton mixed up the vowel-laden state names of Ohio and Iowa. So, given the implausibility of the "mere misstatement" explanation, what's worse: (a) that McCain doesn't understand the facts, parties, factions, and religious groups involved in the Iraq violence, or (b) that his age and mind are impediments to his perception? Sadly--since it implies that the electorate is accepting of our leaders being egregiously wrong--the more politically damaging explanation for McCain is that it is his age and mind that account for his weak grasp on the facts of the Iraq war, not a fundamental inability to grasp the situation (though both may be linked more than we know).

Moreover, it is not as if McCain is starting from a particularly strong position on intellectual fortitude and stamina. He graduated near the very bottom of his class at the Naval Academy (5th from last , or 894th of 899). McCain might attribute that poor performance to being a partier and goof-off, and there are no doubt many intelligent and capable citizens who did not fare well in academia. But for a candidate who's trying to distinguish himself from the current President, a highly lackluster report card is a reminder that no matter the bookish advisers with whom he surrounds himself, he is running to be the next Decider, and the Decider has to make informed, intelligent judgments on whom to listen to in the first place.

Of course, McCain isn't even the oldest candidate in the race for the White House. At 74, Ralph Nader holds that title. You can just see McCain making a point of that on the campaign trail: "Hey, if Ralph can do it, why not me?! I'm a spring chicken compared to him." Though I'm not sure that's a parallel McCain would want to draw.

Despite Robert Scheer's almost weekly protestations on Left, Right, and Center that a septuagenarian is capable of being president, McCain simply doesn't demonstrate the same grasp of the problems facing the nation that Scheer does, or that any presidential candidate should. Ultimately, voters are going to have to decide whether they trust that McCain's doctors and spokespeople are being entirely candid about the Senator's health. But in their medical optimism, McCain's camp shouldn't get too creative with their diagnosis: "He's as healthy as the economy!" That one just doesn't reassure the way it used to.

Comments

[AsaNisMasa]

C'mon...I'm pretty ashamed at the Huffpo for not having a single blogger who has pointed out the likely real reason for McCain's "misspeakings."

He's doing it on purpose. He's perpetuating lies the same way that the Bush Administration did with the Saddam - Al Qaeda link. He says it often enough that the same voter who voted for Bush will start to only hear the Iran/Al Qaeda link and not the "I misspoke" part.

McCain doesn't know what's really going on in the middle east? Get real. The guy may be crooked, hot tempered and aging but he's not stupid.

[BoulderSue]

Healthy as the econony? Is that anything like approaching normalcy in Iraq? Lord help us!

[peterg76]

"McCain... does not understand the war we're waging or whom we're waging it against." Or doesn't care. And that "as Healthy as the Economy!" was a joke, right? Please say it was a joke.

[LeftLeanWing]

With all the Beer his wife has on tap in the kitchen

Please, Check his Liver

[HuffingPuffing]

In other news, his proctologist voiced some concerns. He was heard to say "This man appears to be full of shit..." before being hustled along by a couple of well-built guys in suits, wearing sunglasses and ear-pieces.

[LeftLeanWing]

good one !

[mrdontplay]

...did he really say that he is as healthy as the economy?

This guy is hillarious

[lvdragonlady]

He must be floundering badly then.

[natbach]

Sadly, no, he didn't actually say it. Just exercising the blogger's creative license. : )

[MSF31538]

No one who spent 5 years in solitary confinement and routinely tortured can claim he is sound of mind. He is a very angry man. but who would not be considering what he endured. Have you every spoken to a combat pilot, especially one who has been shot down? They are quite an unusual lot. First,to take off and land at night from an aircraft carrier takes uncommon courage that I call "cajones". He was a broken man when he was released from the Hanoi Hilton. He was passed over three times for promotion from Captain to Admiral. He broke the string of his grandfather and father. How did this failure affect his mental condition.

The proof is in the pudding. We need to see his medical records from the Navy along with his 201 file. That will put the rumors to rest about his being mentally fit to be commander in chief with his finger on the button. In my opinion, McCain is an unstable man. I do not put him down. He is a hero. However we need more than an unstable hero to be President. Why haven't we demanded that he make his Navy records public. After all he is running on that record.

Martin S. Friedlander, Esq.

[WebDeb]

Agreed. Because of his experiences there absolutely has to be unresolved conflict within himself, especially with regard to the war, and pulling out. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a real issue, that can be triggered in situations similar to the trauma. What could be more similar than pulling troops out of a war initiated by failed policies? Would there be hesitation to move in the best interest of the nation because of his history.

His campaign is being built on his record, and I have no doubt that he served our country well. But being a prisoner under those conditions cannot happen without leaving scars. Prisoners for committed crimes in our own penal system have trouble adjusting, and become repeat offenders, and that is without the level of solitary confinement, nor torture, that he endured.

Look at the latter Reagan years. It was quite obvious that early onset Alzheimers had already begun to affect him.

Sad, but true. We must demand to see his physical and psychological evaluations, as reported by independent sources.

[Toonadude]

If you think we are ever going to get real psych evaluations of the president (or candidates to the office) dream on. I for one don’t give a damn if Bush has a bad case of ‘roids but I sure would have welcomed at least one real head report on him in the past 7 plus years. It ain’t gonna happen !!

[NU81]

Do I take this to mean he is NOT going to release any medical records, not even a copy of his latest annual physical? That's probably all of 2-3 pages at most. If he will not release at the very least the latest annual physical report , that's highly deceptive and suspicious. Trust me on this issue.

[sugarmoes]

is it possible that he's DUMBER and GOOFIER than duhbyuh? wow... i hadn't thought that would be possible but here it is staring us in the face.

that said... he doesn't need to know shit from shinola... he will be told what to do every step of the way by his masters... the same masters who pulled bush's strings.

[lysistrata]

If that is true he is in real trouble.

[appleknocker]

"...a panel of his doctors"? How about a panel of non-partisan doctors - including a neurologist?

[BeyondGoodAndEvil]

This is ridiculous he is too old. There is no way that somebody over 65 should be allowed run for the Presidency. Public servants are forced into retirement at 65. Hasn't anyone learned their lesson from Reagan?

[Stirner]

McCain is really a Republican metaphor for America: out of touch, still the bully (look out Ron Paul!), sometimes morphs into a Democrat, and joins in their state of denial regarding the real costs of the illegal war in that bloody cesspool in and around Israel. McCain is America, and we can anticipate that a neocon witch doctor will soon tell us that he is "of sound mind and body". America will get what it deserves.

[ignorantwillyharper]

These doctor's, can they also tell us that McCain is also a back room crook?

[shaggles]

OMG! That headline almost made me spit coffee all over my desk.

[The 13 Colonies]

If McPain is as healthy as the economy, Then we are all in BIG TROUBLE!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!