Op-ed views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author.
Last week we learned that senator John Fetterman, better known as Uncle Festerman, had a couple of nights in the hospital after feeling lightheaded during a very ‘stressful’ retreat. This comes less than a year after his almost fatal stroke last May and his later incoherent appearance on the debate stage against Doctor Oz. The voters in Pennsylvania electing someone with an apparent inability to think was shocking to many, but it’s only gotten worse. We repeatedly heard that Uncle Festerman was on the mend during the campaign. The rebound was happening. We heard things like, “it’s been a long road, but he’s almost back 100%.”
Democrats, over time, have redefined what “fitness to serve” means to them. If we boiled down every “must have” of our elected officials, having a brain would hopefully be the winner. However, the Democrats have taken a different approach to find candidates with undying party loyalty versus mental function, and John Fetterman is the newest shining star in that category.
Since Fetterman has arrived in DC, they have customized closed captioning screens for him both at his desk in chambers and on the dais that go up and down depending on if he’s sitting or standing. In committee, they have supplied him with live audio-to-text devices. The press and other capital staffers have specific instructions on how to work within and around Uncle Festerman’s challenges. Nothing that seems unreasonable to most.
In America, making special accommodations for a disability is the law but also fair and warranted. If someone were deaf, for example, all the necessary screens in the world should be installed. In this example, sign language interpreters would be staffed at all times, and any accommodations needed would be put into place. The difference between someone who is born or has become deaf and Fetterman is simple- John Fetterman has made his condition worse and will continue to do so in D.C.
If I have a heart attack and the doctor advises me not to eat red meat, drink alcohol, or eat after 5 pm and I leave the hospital for a NY strip, a bottle of whiskey, and dessert at 9 pm, is it the heart’s fault or mine?
Since Uncle Festerman’s taken his seat in Senate, all we hear from his team is how “stressful,” “challenging,” and “frustrating” his new post has been. Some in his camp have gone so far as to claim his new seat is making his illness worse, which we saw with this most recent hospital visit. However, the most telling was when his campaign manager came out and claimed, “the doctors recommended he do nothing and avoid stress, but he did the opposite. He went right back on the campaign trail and on to DC” In other words, Fetterman went against all medical advice, continued to make his cognitive health worse, and now wants sympathy from the world. Not just pity but complete accommodation while he does a job his doctors essentially told him not to do.
The senator cannot comprehend anything outside of the written text, and from what’s been reported, even the written text doesn’t pass through those wheels of cognition very quickly. This should immediately rule him out from serving in the Senate. A deaf person, on the other hand, can use sign language to speak on demand and understand on the spot effectively—no delays, in fact, no different than someone who speaks a foreign language. In Fetterman’s case, he cannot think on the spot, he cannot understand what someone is saying, and it takes him some time to grasp the concepts that come to him in writing. How does that work when you’re making huge decisions on the spot for the nation?
Knowing what we know begs the question, is this man fit to serve? Can we trust this US Senator, one of only one hundred people in the world, to make informed, understood, and consistent decisions? Of course not. However, it doesn’t matter to democrats.
This works favorably for the DNC as it plays right into their strategy- only elect controllable candidates and keep them as long as possible. They’ve learned their lesson with the squad and now seek candidates who will toe the line without question. They indeed employed this strategy when looking for a President. No one is as controllable or cognitively challenged as Joe Biden.
It’s no secret that Biden suffers from dementia when he struggles to know where he is and what’s happening around him. We’ve been watching him fumble for two years, and it is obvious he’s suffering from the mental decline that happens to many within his age range. They can control his policies but can’t stop him from shaking hands aimlessly with the air around him. They intentionally kept Feinstein in her senate seat until she could barely stand on her own merely because she could be controlled without question. Many democrats raised questions about Feinstein’s cognitive health, but the DNC leadership kept her propped up with pillows and snow peas as long as possible. We see the same thing with Bernie Sanders, who’s gone from a cooky crazy Bernie to a full-blown nut case in the last few years- repeating himself repeatedly and pulling information out of the sky.
Congress is already much too old for most Americans. The old-timer fundraising chokeholds and insecurities often keep fresh blood from the hill. However, we’ve moved from age being a mere disconnect between politicians and their constituents to a severe problem around mental function and cognitive health. It makes us wonder what ‘mental fitness’ means anymore, and more importantly, do Americans want to know if their elected representatives can’t think on their own?
Joe Biden has continually refused to take any cognitive tests and, much like Fetterman, has released little to no medical information on his specific conditions. However, millions of votes came in for both politicians because the DNC has worked to separate “the brain” from “the job” on the campaign trail and in Washington, DC. Democrat voters have been told that brain function doesn’t matter in politics, and their decisions reflect that sentiment. For Democrats, controllability supersedes cognitive health, even if it means installing politicians who aren’t aware of what’s happening around them.
The DNC has used these tactics over the years to ensure they have total control over their candidates and voters, but it’s been on overdrive since their 2016 election defeat to Donald Trump. The DNC likes their voters the same way they like their candidates- braindead. Democrats would like their voters to punch every D on the ballot without thinking. For the DNC leadership, critical thinking, open discussions, and independent ideas are risks to their future. Those who don’t think, don’t question, and don’t change their vote go for every voter, politician, and bureaucrat under Democratic control. It’s always been conspicuous that Democrats count on collective stupidity to keep them in power, but to start taking advantage of those lacking cognitive function is an entirely new low. However, weaponizing things like mental fitness, disabilities, and age keep the critics away.
The question then becomes- is a working brain a requirement for office? and more importantly, do Americans want to know if their elected officials have cognitive health concerns? And if so, should cognitive testing be required for politicians?
Tweet me your answers @lastgaycons
