trump Wrote Own Glowing Health Letter

[Tennesseer]

Trump’s Doctor Says Trump Basically Wrote That Glowing Health Letter: Report

“He dictated that whole letter. I didn’t write that letter,” said Trump’s personal physician Harold Bornstein.

President Donald Trump’s doctor claims that Trump himself wrote the bizarre letter of health that included results from a 2015 physical suspiciously written with many superlatives, CNN reported Tuesday.

Trump’s presidential campaign released the letter, signed by his personal physician Dr. Harold Bornstein, after Trump’s health came into question in 2015. 

“Mr. Trump has had a recent complete medical examination that showed only positive results,” Bornstein’s letter read. “Actually, his blood pressure, 110/65, and laboratory test results were astonishingly excellent.”

“His physical strength and stamina are extraordinary,” Bornstein continued. “If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency.”

Complete article here: Trump’s Doctor Says Trump Basically Wrote That Glowing Health Letter: Report

We should have known this what with all the hyperbole and superlatives.

[kadee79]

I thought at the time that the Dr. was nuts, now I know why! 

[tallguy]

Did anyone at the time think even for a moment that it was a real letter written by a real doctor of his own accord?  

[ken a.k.a OMK]

Who didn't realize that at the time? Oh the Trump worshipers. 

[Gardening Grandma]

I’m shocked!! Shocked, I tell you! 😱

[weltschmerz]

May 1, 2018 19:48:37 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Trump’s Doctor Says Trump Basically Wrote That Glowing Health Letter: Report

“He dictated that whole letter. I didn’t write that letter,” said Trump’s personal physician Harold Bornstein.

President Donald Trump’s doctor claims that Trump himself wrote the bizarre letter of health that included results from a 2015 physical suspiciously written with many superlatives, CNN reported Tuesday.

Trump’s presidential campaign released the letter, signed by his personal physician Dr. Harold Bornstein, after Trump’s health came into question in 2015. 

“Mr. Trump has had a recent complete medical examination that showed only positive results,” Bornstein’s letter read. “Actually, his blood pressure, 110/65, and laboratory test results were astonishingly excellent.”

“His physical strength and stamina are extraordinary,” Bornstein continued. “If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency.”

Complete article here: Trump’s Doctor Says Trump Basically Wrote That Glowing Health Letter: Report

We should have known this what with all the hyperbole and superlatives.

We DID know it. No doctor worth his salt would EVER write a letter like that.
It didn't make any sense.


A few weeks ahead of its release, Mr Trump tweeted that Mr Bornstein's medical report would show "perfection".

www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43970908

Dumbass.

[weltschmerz]

"Mr. Trump has had a recent complete medical examination that showed only positive results,"
What does that even mean?
Positive for venereal disease, diabetes,  HIV and obesity?
No doctor would write that.


"Actually, his blood pressure, 110/65, and laboratory results were astonishingly excellent."
A real doctor's note would state "Within Normal Limits", not "astonishingly excellent."
No doctor would write that.

"His physical strength and stamina are extraordinary,"
Is that why he can't walk a few blocks, and needs to take a golf cart? He even rides on the green because he can't walk much on a golf course.
No doctor would write that.


"If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency."
How does he know? Has he examined every individual ever elected to the presidency?
No doctor would write that.

His idiot supporters swallowed it, hook, line and sinker.

[busymom]

I always suspected that our current POTUS had at least edited that letter.  It didn't sound like any health report I've ever read, and, having a child with special needs, DS's doctor has written a number of letters on his behalf for our school district over the years.  Didn't even sound close to an actual health report.

[happyhoix]

The whole doctor thing is hilarious, in my opinion. This guy is a complete space cadet.

First of all, he's apparently been chatting to people about the drugs he's prescribed to the president. I'm not in the medical field, but I know enough about the HIPPA rules to know doctors can't talk about what drugs people are on to the public. For this doctor to claim not to know that is truly astonishing.

Then this guy is all excited because Trump's WH doctor was moving to head the VA, and he actually thought he had a shot at becoming the WH doctor himself. When have presidents ever brought their personal physicians with them to the WH?

Then, Trump's head of security and two other Trump Inc people show up and ransack the doctor's office, taking all of Trump's records, and telling the doctor he can't display his picture of himself standing with Trump on his wall anymore. Them someone calls him up and tells him he has no chance in hell of being the WH doctor. So now, the doctor is sulking and publically bemoaning his shabby treatment by Trump and his henchmen. All because he told people that Trump uses a drug that helps grow hair. So in revenge, he's admitted Trump wrote that letter.

The doctor is a nut job. An ignorant nut job, if he doesn't understand the HIPPA rules, and if he allowed Trump to dictate that letter. (He claimed he was correct about Trump being the healthiest president because 'all the other presidents are either dead or sick' - so I guess he overlooked Obama and Bush Jr, who both appear to be neither dead or sick, and both seem in better shape than Trump. Hell, even Clinton appears to be in better shape than Trump).  However - Trump picked him to be his physician, so once again, we see the kind of quality people Trump surrounds himself with.

And yes, it was illegal for Trump's henchmen to grab all Trump's records out of his office - you can request copies of your files from the doctor, but they don't usually give you the original file.  And you 'request' them, not run in and grab them from the file cabinets.

  

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

You know what the call the guy who graduated at the bottom of his med school class?   Doctor.    You have enough money you can doctor shop until you find one that will happily write you a bogus glowing letter of health.

[Tennesseer]

Details about each reason within the article.


Here's 4 reasons why Donald Trump faking a doctor's note actually matters

1. The President of the United States, as a candidate, faked a letter from his doctor to settle health and age questions.

2. Trump repeatedly attacked Hillary Clinton as not being healthy enough to be president.

3. Trump will say or do absolutely anything to win.

4. Trump eventually turns on everyone.

Here's 4 reasons why Donald Trump faking a doctor's note actually matters

[happyhoix]

May 2, 2018 9:48:43 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Details about each reason within the article.


Here's 4 reasons why Donald Trump faking a doctor's note actually matters

1. The President of the United States, as a candidate, faked a letter from his doctor to settle health and age questions.

2. Trump repeatedly attacked Hillary Clinton as not being healthy enough to be president.

3. Trump will say or do absolutely anything to win.

4. Trump eventually turns on everyone.

Here's 4 reasons why Donald Trump faking a doctor's note actually matters

Yep.

As another example - Trump going on CNN to say that Cohen only did a 'tiny' amount of legal work for him, and the National Enquirer, Trump's buddy's publication, has started writing articles slamming Cohen.

Yet another former close associate thrown under the bus.

[djAdvocate]

everything this guy says is suspect.  he tells the truth, unvarnished, only about 10% of the time.

or to put it another way, for you poker players, your odds of drawing an inside straight are about the same as the POtuS telling the truth.

[Green Eyed Lady]

It appears he did "write" it and he did sign it. He simply admits that Trump dictated it. He doesn't say it was a fabrication. He doesn't say it was forged. He doesn't say he didn't have the letter typed up, printed and signed. He says he did tell Trump what could or couldn't be in the letter. However, it's not some forgery people like to make it out to be - at least according to the doctor.

Another Chicken Little's head explodes episode.

[Tennesseer]

May 2, 2018 11:03:08 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

It appears he did "write" it and he did sign it. He simply admits that Trump dictated it. He doesn't say it was a fabrication. He doesn't say it was forged. He doesn't say he didn't have the letter typed up, printed and signed. He says he did tell Trump what could or couldn't be in the letter. However, it's not some forgery people like to make it out to be - at least according to the doctor.

Another Chicken Little's head explodes episode.

No one has said it is a forgery, at least not here. But trump did tell him what to put in the letter word-for-word as opposed to the doctor putting his own opinions into the letter.

And if the doctor was so stupid to allow trump tho write his own praise, what does that say about the intelligence of the doctor? Can the doctor's medical assessment of trump really bed trusted?

The answer is no. We already know trump cannot be trusted.

[midjd]

When my mother was a paralegal, my grandfather used to dictate legal briefs into a dictaphone. She typed and edited the briefs accordingly. Was she "writing" these briefs (in which case there would be a whole lot of paralegals engaging in the unauthorized practice of law)? Or was the person dictating them writing them? 

I agree it's no great revelation, since the limited number of adjectives in Trump's vocabulary and his flair for hyperbole make his writing pretty distinctive (and this letter was a prime example of both), but spinning it as "the doctor wrote it and signed it" is... well, it's spin. This is not an issue of changing a few words to comport with what the patient needs. 

[Green Eyed Lady]

My physician asks me on occasion how I need my correspondence worded.  Where I work, if you miss four days in a row from illness, you must have a letter from your physician before you can return to work. When I requested same, he wrote that I had an "acute.....". I asked him to change it to just say I was under the care of a physician and that I didn't need my employer knowing what was wrong - just that I was able to return to work. That's not uncommon and as long as it's the truth, my physician will word my correspondence as I need or want it worded. That doesn't make it a forgery or anything else other than the wording being so obviously un-medical-like.

ETA:  I know nobody here said it was a forgery but the internet-hair is on fire over this, acting like they discovered the bones of Jimmy Hoffa. 

[djAdvocate]

May 2, 2018 11:03:08 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

It appears he did "write" it and he did sign it. He simply admits that Trump dictated it. He doesn't say it was a fabrication.

those two sentences seem like a contradiction to me.

here is what i see: we have a doctor's report that no doctor would ever give of his or her own accord.
we have a doctor that admits that the patient DICTATED the report to him.

how is that NOT a fabrication?

this is what i just got through talking about with "language".  perhaps the word fabrication means something different to you than to me.

[Green Eyed Lady]

May 2, 2018 11:09:13 GMT -5 midjd said:

When my mother was a paralegal, my grandfather used to dictate legal briefs into a dictaphone. She typed and edited the briefs accordingly. Was she "writing" these briefs (in which case there would be a whole lot of paralegals engaging in the unauthorized practice of law)? Or was the person dictating them writing them? 

I agree it's no great revelation, since the limited number of adjectives in Trump's vocabulary and his flair for hyperbole make his writing pretty distinctive (and this letter was a prime example of both), but spinning it as "the doctor wrote it and signed it" is... well, it's spin. This is not an issue of changing a few words to comport with what the patient needs. 

True, but I'm about positive that Trump, himself, didn't dictate the letter to the clerical staff in the doctor's office. Therefore, the doctor dictated it, had them type is and print it, and signed it. While it's obvious he added language that Trump wanted in there, the doctor did write the letter, (hopefully) read it, and signed it. Period. End of non-story.

[thyme4change]

Every time I think people can't surprise me...

[midjd]

May 2, 2018 11:14:31 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

May 2, 2018 11:09:13 GMT -5 midjd said:

When my mother was a paralegal, my grandfather used to dictate legal briefs into a dictaphone. She typed and edited the briefs accordingly. Was she "writing" these briefs (in which case there would be a whole lot of paralegals engaging in the unauthorized practice of law)? Or was the person dictating them writing them? 

I agree it's no great revelation, since the limited number of adjectives in Trump's vocabulary and his flair for hyperbole make his writing pretty distinctive (and this letter was a prime example of both), but spinning it as "the doctor wrote it and signed it" is... well, it's spin. This is not an issue of changing a few words to comport with what the patient needs. 

True, but I'm about positive that Trump, himself, didn't dictate the letter to the clerical staff in the doctor's office. Therefore, the doctor dictated it, had them type is and print it, and signed it. While it's obvious he added language that Trump wanted in there, the doctor did write the letter, (hopefully) read it, and signed it. Period. End of non-story.

That's not what the doctor said. 

This week, Bornstein offered a drastically different account of how the health report was compiled. According to a report from CNN, Bornstein said the letter was put together while he was on the phone with Trump. The patient offered up the language he wanted Bornstein to write, he now claims.

Trump “dictated the letter and I would tell him what he couldn’t put in there,” Bornstein told the network.

... “He dictated that whole letter,” Bornstein told CNN. “I didn’t write that letter.”

[djAdvocate]

GEL: i have a pretty big problem with finding legal/medical/professional help to basically act as a proxy for your own opinion.  legal/medical/professional help should be there to STRICTLY offer their OWN opinion.  this is a major difference that i have with the president.  of course, you could point out (with justification) that Trump is not the first to do this, and you would be correct.  the Bush administration did it with "the Torture Memos" for example.  and it was equally as reprehensible, imo. 

another good example is physicians touting the medical benefits of cigarettes.  this sort of thing undermines the credibility of professionals, imo. 

here is my point: when professionals are consulted, i, for one, expect them to offer THEIR professional, independent opinion.  the less it seems like that has happened, the more "upset" i get that they were even "consulted". 

[Green Eyed Lady]

May 2, 2018 11:18:29 GMT -5 midjd said:

May 2, 2018 11:14:31 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

True, but I'm about positive that Trump, himself, didn't dictate the letter to the clerical staff in the doctor's office. Therefore, the doctor dictated it, had them type is and print it, and signed it. While it's obvious he added language that Trump wanted in there, the doctor did write the letter, (hopefully) read it, and signed it. Period. End of non-story.

That's not what the doctor said. 

This week, Bornstein offered a drastically different account of how the health report was compiled. According to a report from CNN, Bornstein said the letter was put together while he was on the phone with Trump. The patient offered up the language he wanted Bornstein to write, he now claims.

Trump “dictated the letter and I would tell him what he couldn’t put in there,” Bornstein told the network.

I read the same report.   I'm suspect of the word "dictated" rather than something like "told me what he wanted over the phone".  Again, I'm quite sure the doctor actually did the "dictating", making sure to include the phrases Trump wanted.  Another part of that same article, if I recall, is where the doctor said that he told Trump what he couldn't or could say.  Therefore, it's obvious that Trump's call to him wasn't "dictated" word per word but that only phrases Trump wanted in the letter were included.

In addition, the same doctor's original statement said (if I recall) that he has dashed off the letter in about 5 minutes while he was riding in a car.  So who knows what the truth is?  And unless somebody is just looking for something to be hysterical about, who cares?  The doctor didn't say the letter was a lie in regards to his personal health or anything like that.  THAT, I would care about even though it's too late now.  So how does it matter?

[Opti]

May 2, 2018 11:14:31 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

May 2, 2018 11:09:13 GMT -5 midjd said:

When my mother was a paralegal, my grandfather used to dictate legal briefs into a dictaphone. She typed and edited the briefs accordingly. Was she "writing" these briefs (in which case there would be a whole lot of paralegals engaging in the unauthorized practice of law)? Or was the person dictating them writing them? 

I agree it's no great revelation, since the limited number of adjectives in Trump's vocabulary and his flair for hyperbole make his writing pretty distinctive (and this letter was a prime example of both), but spinning it as "the doctor wrote it and signed it" is... well, it's spin. This is not an issue of changing a few words to comport with what the patient needs. 

True, but I'm about positive that Trump, himself, didn't dictate the letter to the clerical staff in the doctor's office. Therefore, the doctor dictated it, had them type is and print it, and signed it. While it's obvious he added language that Trump wanted in there, the doctor did write the letter, (hopefully) read it, and signed it. Period. End of non-story.

I wouldn't be positive of that at all. What I remember when this came out more than a year ago, I thought the letter was brought for the doctor to sign and he signed it when Trump and he were in the same limo. It may not have happened that way exactly, but I really doubt the doctor dictated the letter to anyone on his staff, even to put it on his letterhead. It is far more likely he got a written copy from Trump and was told to put it on letterhead and sign it. No dictation would be necessary. You could simply copy it on to letterhead paper if typed in a useable format or re-type it if not.

[midjd]

The doctor didn't say the letter was a lie in regards to his personal health or anything like that.

I'm not sure a statement like that would be HIPAA-compliant.... although not that that stopped the doctor from talking about the hair-growth medication Trump was/is using.

Also not sure why you're suspicious of the word "dictated." It isn't shorthand for "told me what he wanted over the phone," it has a specific definition, and if that's the word the doctor chose to use, I assume he is familiar with that definition and intended it to be taken that way. 

As far as "why does it matter?" Well, in many ways it doesn't (and I'm not seeing the hysteria you seem to be seeing). I've lost the ability to be surprised or outraged when the President tells a lie. Just toss it on the pile with the others, I guess. 

[djAdvocate]

May 2, 2018 11:23:54 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

May 2, 2018 11:18:29 GMT -5 midjd said:

That's not what the doctor said. 

I read the same report.   I'm suspect of the word "dictated" rather than something like "told me what he wanted over the phone".  Again, I'm quite sure the doctor actually did the "dictating", making sure to include the phrases Trump wanted. 

why are you sure of that?  i am asking that because i can't think of any reason you SHOULD be sure.

i am reasonably sure that Trump did the dictating, and the doctor did minor edits.

[Opti]

May 2, 2018 11:23:54 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

May 2, 2018 11:18:29 GMT -5 midjd said:

That's not what the doctor said. 

I read the same report.   I'm suspect of the word "dictated" rather than something like "told me what he wanted over the phone".  Again, I'm quite sure the doctor actually did the "dictating", making sure to include the phrases Trump wanted.  Another part of that same article, if I recall, is where the doctor said that he told Trump what he couldn't or could say.  Therefore, it's obvious that Trump's call to him wasn't "dictated" word per word but that only phrases Trump wanted in the letter were included.

In addition, the same doctor's original statement said (if I recall) that he has dashed off the letter in about 5 minutes while he was riding in a car.  So who knows what the truth is?  And unless somebody is just looking for something to be hysterical about, who cares?  The doctor didn't say the letter was a lie in regards to his personal health or anything like that.  THAT, I would care about even though it's too late now.  So how does it matter?

Why would he need to? Anyone with common sense knew much of that letter wasn't true. Best health ever?

Positive results? How many health tests really have positive or negative results? Pregnancy, HiV?...

Most test results are in ranges. Blood pressure, iron level, sugar level, kidney function, etc.

[Tiny]

May 2, 2018 11:03:08 GMT -5 Green Eyed Lady said:

It appears he did "write" it and he did sign it. He simply admits that Trump dictated it. He doesn't say it was a fabrication. He doesn't say it was forged. He doesn't say he didn't have the letter typed up, printed and signed. He says he did tell Trump what could or couldn't be in the letter. However, it's not some forgery people like to make it out to be - at least according to the doctor.

Another Chicken Little's head explodes episode.

Please tell me you are intentionally, as a joke, missing the entire problem with the letter...  Please.  Even.if.it's.a.lie.  

[Opti]

Bornstein violated HIPPA concerning his reveal. My guess is Trump violated the law in obtaining his records. Unfortunately its likely Bornstein will get censured in some way and Trump will not. Stupid reveal on the hair drug though. Likely Trump is the only one who really cares about that.

[Green Eyed Lady]

May 2, 2018 11:30:40 GMT -5 midjd said:

The doctor didn't say the letter was a lie in regards to his personal health or anything like that.

I'm not sure a statement like that would be HIPAA-compliant.... although not that that stopped the doctor from talking about the hair-growth medication Trump was/is using.

Also not sure why you're suspicious of the word "dictated." It isn't shorthand for "told me what he wanted over the phone," it has a specific definition, and if that's the word the doctor chose to use, I assume he is familiar with that definition and intended it to be taken that way. 

It's probably me being old.  To me, "dictate" means to speak into a recorder/computer or have the letter dictated in short hand. If Trump was on the phone telling the doctor what he wanted in the letter, that doesn't mean "dictate" to me.  That means telling him over the phone what he wanted in the letter.  To me, the actual "dictation" would be the doctor dictating - word per word - to whomever transcribes the letter.  It's just a case of what the word means to me.  I highly doubt Trump dictated the letter to the employee who typed it.  It's quite possible, as someone else said, that he sent the letter to be copied on letterhead, but since the article (or any others I've seen)doesn't say that anywhere that is what happened, I'm not considering that as a possibility...at least right now.