Donald Trump began the week with a press gaggle aboard Air Force One, where the president reflected on some of the exams he took at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, including “cognitive tests” that he said congresswomen of color would struggle with because they’re “low IQ” people.
Trump: "They have Jasmine Crockett — a low IQ person. AOC is low IQ. Have her pass the exams I decided to take when I was at Walter Reed. They're cognitive tests. Let AOC go against Trump. Let Jasmine go against Trump. The first couple questions are easy — a tiger, an elephant, a giraffe … "
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-10-27T12:19:08.555Z
As odd and offensive as the rhetoric obviously was, it was made worse by Trump’s long struggle to understand the purpose of these exams. We’re talking about tests that are used to identify evidence of dementia, mental deterioration and neurodegenerative diseases. Those who take them may be asked, for example, to draw a clock or describe the similarities between oranges and bananas.
Trump has somehow convinced himself, however, that they’re akin to Mensa exams and that the results are proof of his genius. (His “Person. Woman. Man. Camera. TV.” boast remains the stuff of legend.)
As part of the same Q&A, another follow-up question stood out: “The readout from Walter Reed mentioned ‘advanced medical imaging,’” a reporter noted. “Did you get an MRI?”
The New York Times highlighted his response:
President Trump said that he underwent magnetic resonance imaging earlier this month, telling reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday that the results had been ‘perfect’ but declining to say why his doctors had ordered the scan.
The issue has been lingering a bit in the background in recent weeks, following Trump’s Oct. 10 visit to Walter Reed for his second physical of the year. Soon after, an official White House summary released to news organizations noted that he underwent “advanced imaging” as part of that visit.
Last week, a reporter asked White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt about the MRI. The president’s chief spokesperson said MRIs are routine during medical exams (that doesn’t appear to be altogether true), though Leavitt conceded that she didn’t know why this specific test was ordered.
This week, Trump advanced the story by acknowledging the MRI but hedging on any details, despite his frequent boasts about transparency. The Republican specifically told reporters they could “ask the doctors” about the MRI, adding, “I think they gave you a very conclusive — nobody has ever given you reports like I gave you.” But that wasn’t quite right, either. For one thing, the recent White House readout didn’t explain the reason for the MRI. For another, that Trump has somehow created a new standard for excellence when it comes to presidential medical transparency is plainly contradicted by his record. Without more information, it’s difficult to speculate about what (if anything) this story will amount to, though we probably haven’t heard the last of this line of questions. Watch this space.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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