Trumps counselor says his health may keep him from serving out his entire term!

Questions surrounding Donald Trump’s health have resurfaced once again—this time with sharper focus and deeper concern. While the White House physician has declared the 78-year-old president to be in “excellent health,” some within his own party aren’t as convinced. Rick Wilson, a prominent Republican strategist and co-founder of the Lincoln Project, has publicly voiced doubts about Trump’s cognitive condition, warning that his declining mental state could prevent him from completing another full term in office.

The controversy follows Trump’s widely discussed medical examination in April, an event that was meant to silence speculation about his physical and mental fitness. According to White House physician Dr. Sean Barbabella, Trump demonstrated “robust cardiac, pulmonary, neurological, and general physical function.” The detailed report highlighted his “active lifestyle,” crediting it as a major contributor to his well-being. The evaluation was thorough, involving 14 physicians who conducted tests on everything from reflexes and motor coordination to mood markers such as anxiety and depression.

Physically, Trump’s profile appeared strong on paper. At 6’3” and just over 220 pounds, he’s reportedly lost about 25 pounds since leaving office. His cholesterol levels have improved, and he continues to abstain from alcohol and tobacco—habits that have likely benefited his long-term health. Doctors noted only minor issues, including mild sun damage and scarring on his right ear, remnants from the assassination attempt at his July 2024 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Still, despite the official report’s glowing assessment, Wilson insists that something isn’t right. In an interview with Times Radio, he described Trump as “not coherent,” pointing to frequent verbal slips, digressions, and what he labeled “aphasic episodes”—moments when the president seems unable to articulate his thoughts clearly. “His incapacity to express a coherent idea without constant tangents and confusion is alarming,” Wilson said. “The man you’re seeing now isn’t the Trump of 2015, or even the Trump of 2020. He’s changed—dramatically.”

Wilson’s comments reflect a growing unease among some longtime observers who have followed Trump’s behavior over the years. Though Trump’s doctors have consistently declared him fit for duty, Wilson argues that such evaluations don’t always reveal the full truth. “You can pass a cognitive test and still be in decline,” he warned. “A large number of experts are watching his behavior and saying, ‘This is what early dementia looks like.’”

According to Wilson, the danger isn’t just physical fatigue but potential cognitive deterioration—something no routine medical screening can fully capture. “It’s possible to ace a mental test in a controlled setting and still struggle with complex reasoning, focus, or emotional stability in daily life,” he said. “That’s what we’re witnessing.”

Echoing those concerns, veteran journalist Timothy L. O’Brien—who has covered Trump for decades—told MSNBC’s The Weekend: Primetime that Trump’s decline is both visible and worrisome. O’Brien recalled Trump’s father, Fred Trump, who reportedly suffered from dementia in his later years. “That specter haunts him,” O’Brien said, adding that Trump’s fixation on remaining in power, including talk of running for a third term, could stem from fear rather than ambition. “It’s not purely political,” he said. “It’s about self-preservation and self-image.”

The discussion of Trump’s health has become as political as it is medical. His April 2025 report marked a departure from the vague and glowing statements that characterized earlier campaign seasons. During the 2016 and 2020 elections, Trump’s doctors released brief, flattering notes with little substance—declarations that he was in “astonishingly excellent health” without supporting evidence. This time, the process was more deliberate, perhaps in response to growing public pressure and media scrutiny.

In the lead-up to the 2024 election, Trump resisted calls to release a full medical history, relying instead on letters from his long-trusted physicians, including Dr. Ronny Jackson, who had treated him after the 2023 assassination attempt. Those letters, like one from Dr. Bruce Aronwald in late 2023, were short on specifics. Aronwald’s note, published on President Biden’s 81st birthday, claimed Trump was in “excellent” health but offered no test results or data to support that conclusion.

By October 2024, Steven Cheung, Trump’s campaign communications director, defended the decision to withhold detailed information, saying that Trump had already provided sufficient transparency through his doctors. “Every medical professional who has examined him agrees he’s perfectly capable of serving as Commander in Chief,” Cheung said. He also used the opportunity to take a swipe at then-rival Kamala Harris, boasting about Trump’s “incredibly active campaign schedule” compared to what he described as Harris’s “struggles to meet the demands of campaigning.”

Despite the campaign’s insistence on transparency, critics argue that Trump’s public appearances tell a different story. Wilson and others have highlighted a pattern of erratic behavior, incoherent rants, and emotional volatility as signs of possible decline. “It’s not just slips of the tongue,” Wilson said. “It’s the inability to track a thought, to remember basic facts, to stay grounded in reality. We’re watching a slow unraveling.”

The issue is complicated by Trump’s history of using health as a political weapon. Throughout his career, he has often mocked opponents’ stamina, mental sharpness, or age. He famously questioned Hillary Clinton’s health during the 2016 campaign and ridiculed President Biden’s speech patterns in 2020. Now, the scrutiny has come full circle.

Trump’s defenders, however, remain steadfast. Dr. Ronny Jackson, who served as White House physician under both Obama and Trump and is now a Texas congressman, has repeatedly dismissed any suggestion of cognitive decline. Jackson continues to publicly vouch for Trump’s health, citing his mental acuity and “tireless energy.” His stance has become a rallying point for Trump loyalists who view the health debate as another political smear.

Yet critics like Wilson maintain that blind loyalty won’t change reality. “It’s not partisan to ask hard questions about whether a 78-year-old man showing signs of confusion can handle another four years in one of the most demanding jobs on Earth,” he said. “It’s a matter of national security.”

For many Americans, the discussion raises uncomfortable parallels between Trump and other aging leaders around the world who have clung to power despite visible signs of frailty. The presidency demands sharpness, consistency, and the ability to process complex information under pressure. If Trump is truly declining, the implications could be profound—not only for his administration but for the stability of the government itself.

While official statements continue to paint a picture of good health, the growing chorus of dissenters suggests that all may not be as it seems. Medical tests can confirm cholesterol levels and reflex responses, but they can’t measure clarity of thought, memory, or emotional control under stress. Those are the qualities that determine whether a leader can truly govern.

Rick Wilson summed up the unease with a blunt warning: “The test results might say he’s fine. But the man we’re watching—the one rambling, lashing out, and struggling to stay on message—tells a different story. That’s the one America needs to pay attention to.”

As the debate continues, one thing is clear: the question isn’t just whether Donald Trump is healthy enough to serve another term. It’s whether his mind and body can endure the weight of the presidency once more—and whether anyone close to him is willing to say otherwise.