Trump repeats same story over and over as signs of deterioration mount

Donald Trump appears in court during his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 7, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Curtis Means-Pool/Getty Images)

Either the nearly 80-year-old Donald Trump believes a cognitive test is an intelligence test or he's lying about his mental health. I don't think there's a gray zone here. If it's the first, he's demented. If it's the second, he's hiding something (probably dementia). Either way, it's bad.

It happens too frequently to ignore. The president brags about passing a cognitive test to the point where he seems to believe it's a measure of his IQ. In public remarks, he often puts special emphasis on the word "cognitive" as if to stress that it demonstrates his intelligence. Here's what he told the New York Post after a third trip in a year to Walter Reed. "I do physicals because I think I have an obligation to do it. I took a cognitive test and I got 100 percent on it. The doctors told me very, very few people can ace it. It's actually a tough test."

That's only the latest iteration. I went to the Bluesky feed of Aaron Rupar, founder of Public Notice. Aaron watches most of Trump's public appearances. I searched for "cognitive."

On May 22, during a rally, Trump said:

I said, how many presidents have taken [a cognitive test]? "None." I said, well, is it tough? "It’s a tough test. It starts off easy, then it gets very, very tough." I said well, you know what? I’m gonna take that test. ... This was in my first term. I took it and I aced it. ... So the first question was, you have a bear, a snake, an elephant and a horse. "Name the horse." That’s the horse. ... The New York Times story ... only use[s] the first question that you go into. The other questions they didn’t go into. ... It had a question like "pick a number, sir, any number." Okay, 203. "Multiple by 9. Divide by 2. Add on 1,324. Subtract 1,292. Sir, multiply it out one more time by 19. What is the answer, sir?" I got it right. And the one doctor said, "I've been doing this test for 20 years. I've never seen anybody ace it."

On May 4, during a presser, Trump said:

In my opinion, anybody running for president or vice president should take a cognitive test. No president has ever taken one, except me. I’ve taken three and I’ve aced each one. One in the first administration, two over here. And whenever they get a little sassy like, "Does he still have what it takes?" I say, all right I’ll take another one. They are hard. There are many people in this room I know that are smart. They’re not gonna ace them. The first question is very easy. You have a lion, a bear and alligator and a squirrel. "Which is the squirrel?" ... The first four or five questions, they get a little more difficult. By the time you get to the end, I don’t wanna be insulting, I’m not gonna do what Gavin Newsom [did] ...

On May 1, during a speech, Trump said:

I took three of them. Aced all of them. ... I’m the only president to take a cognitive test. I don’t think Obama could pass it. ... Well, Biden – give me a break. The first question is very easy. It’s a lion, a giraffe, a bear and a shark. Which one is the bear? It's a very standard test, but very tough around those 10 questions. ... I’m in a room of brilliant people, but a lot of you wouldn’t have been able to answer. When I got the score of the test, the doctor said "wow." ... I’ve had different phases. They’ve said "he’s a mad genius" and I didn't mind that too much. They said "he’s a horrible human being" and I didn't like that much. Then they said "he’s really not a smart person at all." I really hated that, so I took a cognitive test. ... Dr. Ronny ... had a whole team of doctors at Walter Reed. I said, should I do it? He said, "well, it’s a tough exam, actually. Those last 20 questions they get tough. A lot of people can’t do them." ... I said, I do well on things, so let’s do it. I got every one right.

On March 26, during a Cabinet meeting, Trump said:

I’m the only president that ever took a cognitive test. I took it three times. It’s actually a very hard test. It wasn’t hard for me, but it’s a cognitive test. It starts off with an easy question and by the time you get to the end ... very few people can answer those questions. They get very tough, mathematical equations and things. I took it three times. I aced it all three times. ... Doc Ronny told me ... "if you take it, it’s Walter Reed ... and if you do badly, it’s probably gonna get out." But I aced it. I got them all right. One doctor said "I’ve never seen anybody get them all right. I’ve been doing the test for 20 years." ... I would love to see anybody that’s a president or a vice president ... take a cognitive test.

On December 2, 2025, during a Cabinet meeting, Trump said:

They said, "would you like to take a cognitive test?" I said, is it hard? They said, "yes." ... I said, who is the last president to take one? "No president has ever agreed to take one." When you get into the mid questions, meaning, question No. 10, 11, 12, 28, 30, they get harder and harder. ... They said, "sir, the problem is this is Walter Reed Hospital, and that's a military hospital and that means that things are sort of open. You could do poorly." I said, I won't do poorly. I’m a smart person. I'm not stupid person. As the doctor will tell you, I aced it. I got every question right. These are questions that I would say 99 percent of the people that I’m talking to, meaning the people from the fake news, would not do well in this exams. But I’m the only one that took it. I got every single question right.

On October 9, 2025, a day before going to Walter Reed, Trump said:

I also did a cognitive exam, which is always very risky, because if I didn’t do well, you’d be the first to be blaring it. I had a perfect score and one of the doctors said he’s almost never seen a perfect score. ... When they asked, would I like to do one, I asked, did Obama do it "No." Did Bush do it? "No." Did Biden do it? Biden would’ve gotten the first three questions. ... I’m actually a person that believes that if you're president, you should do a cognitive exam, but last time I took a cognitive exam, and it was a perfect score. ... The first few questions are pretty easy. Once you get into the middle, it gets a little tricky. And there aren’t a lot of people in this room that we get every single question right.

On April 14, 2025, in the Oval Office, Trump said:

I took my cognitive exam and I got the highest mark. One of the doctors said "sir, I’ve never seen anybody get that kind of ... mark." I hope you’re happy with that, although they haven’t been bugging me too much to take a cognitive, but I did do my physical and it was released. I hope you’re all happy with it. But the cognitive. They said to me, "sir, would you like to take a cognitive test?" I said did Biden take one. "No." ... What about Obama? Let me be the only one to take one. I've actually taken them three times already."

There are only a few examples drawn from Aaron Rupar's vast archive, and I hasten to add here that I'm sorry for making you read the same story over and over. However, that's the point I'm trying to make. The sheer mass of repetition is itself a sign of age-related cognitive deterioration – or, to use a catch-all term, dementia. The president can't remember the last time he told the story and doesn't care, because the purpose of telling it is there's nothing wrong with him. Indeed, the purpose is more than that. It's proving his genetic superiority.

A cognitive test is not a test of intelligence and any man of modest intelligence would understand that from having taken a cognitive test. Trump, however, is not that man. He is famed for being stupid, a fact that he's exquisitely sensitive to. I suspect it literally causes him pain when his narcissism collides with the reality of other people's opinion of him. He believes he is superior by dint of his genes and if you disagree, you must be crushed. As his mind slips away, however, the gap widens between his view of himself and everyone else's. And the wider the gap gets, the more he must attempt to reassert dominance. As he said: "they said 'he’s really not a smart person at all.' I really hated that, so I took a cognitive test."

Think of it this way. By passing "the cognitive," Trump believes that:

nothing is wrong with him;
indeed, something is very right with him;
it's better than all other presidents combined;
his enemies are intellectually inferior and;
it's evidence beyond a shadow of doubt of his genetic superiority over lesser mortals, who in turn have no right to challenge him. Donald Trump is a Very Special Boy. He aced it three times! The doctors were wowed! Science proved it! Enemies can now shut up.

That's not just narcissism. That's dementia, too. They can't be separated. Indeed, as he grows more demented, he will grow more narcissistic (as hard as that it to believe). That he appears to have given up on being president illustrates the point. While the war against Iran burns up the American economy, Trump talks about reflecting pools being taller than the Empire State Building. He posts deranged images of enemies on social media. He falls asleep on live television. None of that matters. "The cognitive" affirms his right to rule unchallenged.

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