New Ron Reagan book: My dad had Alzheimer’s while in office
posted at 8:49 pm on January 14, 2011 by Allahpundit
Reagan’s doctors and Alzheimer’s specialists have been debunking this myth for years, but no matter how many times they try to explain that occasional memory lapses in an elderly person do not an Alzheimer’s diagnosis make, the narrative rolls on. And it’ll keep rolling, thanks to Ron Jr and the explosive never-before-revealed details in his new book which, per Paul Bedard of U.S. News, … seem not to add up.
Besides playing amateur doctor, Ron Reagan reveals, if true, brain surgery on his dad never before reported. He accurately reports that Reagan, after leaving the presidency, was bucked from a horse on July 4, 1989, while in Mexico. Ron tells of how his dad, after initially refusing medical help, was transported to a San Diego hospital. “Surgeons opening his skull to relieve pressure on the brain emerged from the operating room with the news that they had detected what they took to be probable signs of Alzheimer’s disease.” Several Reagan associates, however, say there was no surgery in San Diego.
What’s more there is no reporting about any San Diego operation on Reagan. News reports at the time of his fall say Reagan was flown to a hospital in Arizona, where he was treated for scrapes and bruises and released after five hours…
Ron Reagan doesn’t mention this, but says that Reagan visited the Mayo Clinic in 1990 for tests that “confirmed the initial suspicion of Alzheimer’s.” Reagan’s post-presidency history, documented in several archives like University of Texas, reveal no such visit. And Dr. John E. Hutton Jr. his doctor from 1984 through Reagan’s retirement, told the New York Times that Reagan didn’t show the tell-tale symptoms until 1993.
Follow the link and you’ll see that another big piece of “evidence” is Ron feeling his heart sink as he watched his pop stumble through a bad, “bewildered” performance in his first debate with Mondale in 1984. Quote: “Some voters were beginning to imagine grandpa—who can never find his reading glasses—in charge of a bristling nuclear arsenal, and it was making them nervous. Worse, my father now seemed to be giving them legitimate reason for concern.” That was October 7, 1984; a month later, the “concern” had turned into a 49-state landslide.
Here’s former Reagan advisor David Gergen telling Ron, as gently as he can: Stop.
Blowback
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Of course she didn’t bother. Why should she? That’s all lies and Ron Jr speaks truth!
/
ladyingray on January 15, 2011 at 12:18 PM
The only heartless person in this thread is you.
A FYI, little Ronnie never lived in the White House with his dad. This is a fabricated story and you’d know that if you had bothered to read the links attached.
But then again, liberals don’t read, they just make it up as they go.
Please leave you POS.
Knucklehead on January 15, 2011 at 12:23 PM
AnninCA on January 15, 2011 at 12:08 PM
You’re ill. The fact is the medically trained said he did not. You and Bill Maher would make great friends. Now FO.
CWforFreedom on January 15, 2011 at 12:23 PM
His doctors, obviously, were not liberals. Therefore, they are by default not smart enough to have recognized what liberals have been able to divine from the ether.
I’ve heard a rumor that some chicken bone readers also agree with Ann.
BobMbx on January 15, 2011 at 12:37 PM
Up to your normal lies…isn’t medical proof enough for you? One of his great attributes is that he did “stumble” with words, in fact most great speakers, ones who connect, seem to always be grasping for that right word, or searching for the right memory. Obama is a master at, umm, you know, ummm, I just, I just, huh, just can’t help myself thinking of uhhhh, that ummm time that Michelle and I ummm first, uhhhh, you know, ummmm met….
Clinton…biting his lip, searching for just the right word, shaking his head…the perfect speaker, the perfect “enunciater”, never gets elected. The closest was Winston Churchill, another era…and a whole ‘nother leader.
Annin, you are an idiot and a fool…you do not disappoint us, you exceed our expectations of you on most every post.
right2bright on January 15, 2011 at 12:46 PM
I think that all we can say is that Alzheimer’s symptoms, like most neurological conditions, manifest differently in different people. Some people decline rapidly, some slowly. And, of course, some people are able to compensate for various aspects of their declining faculties better than others. I don’t doubt that Reagan “had Alzehimer’s” in the strict medical sense while he was in office, but that’s completely irrelevant. Not only was there no treatments at the time, but there’s no reason to think there were any serious symptoms until years later.
The fact that Ron Reagan appears to be either making things up or extremely confused about whether or not his father even had that head surgery does not speak to his credibility or his personal knowledge of his father’s health. Especially when the President’s doctors and friends say he’s wrong.
Today’s concern trolls are not friends of anyone with Alzheimer’s. Vocal Reagan critics were calling him a disconnected, confused old man before he was even elected. That served as a cheap way of dismissing his policies and his many successes. Of course, it also wrote off everyone else above a certain age as being either useless or dangerously deranged, but for them that was acceptable collateral damage.
GalosGann on January 15, 2011 at 12:49 PM
That is not true, one of his doctors was a very influential democrat.
And of course his famous line after being shot…”I sure hope you voted Republican”…when is fact the doctors had not.
right2bright on January 15, 2011 at 12:49 PM
Dysfunctional Ballerina Pretends To Be A Doctor.
News at ten.
viking01 on January 15, 2011 at 12:52 PM
@right2bright: Reagan’s quote is somewhat more elegant than you gave him credit for: “I hope you’re all Republicans.”
Sowell Disciple on January 15, 2011 at 1:08 PM
Ron Reagan: attention whore.
uncivilized on January 15, 2011 at 1:11 PM
Little Ronnie is trying to make living. He needed a blockbuster hook to sell some more books, and he concocted one.
Really Right on January 15, 2011 at 1:35 PM
I’ll take a Reagan – President with Alzheimer’s, any day over the smarties of the past 100 years.
antisocial on January 15, 2011 at 1:41 PM
Little ronnie reagan is a POS. From obscurity he takes this opportunity of his dad’s 100 year birthday to release a book that sh1ts on his father’s memory.
Back to obscurity, not soon enough, a$$hat.
Midas on January 15, 2011 at 1:46 PM
As I recall, it was obvious that Reagan had a problem late in his second term. There are several tapes(or one) I think of Ronald Reagan being prompted by Nancy in the background while he was speaking to reporters.
G. on January 15, 2011 at 1:53 PM
Leftists lying and engaging in revisionist history? When did that start?
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 1:53 PM
If Reagan had Alzheimer’s while president then apparently that should be a requirement to be elected. This is total bunk, just like the birth certificate and the truthers. Little ronnie is prostituting himself to try to make a buck on the back of a man who’s jock strap he isn’t worthy of carrying.
flytier on January 15, 2011 at 1:56 PM
When Ronald Reagan passed away the press was stunned by the outpouring of love for the man. It didn’t suprise those of us who really loved him. I watched the people who came in to pay their respects; a woman who went to the Reagan library who cried while clutching the hand of the bronze statue, a native American in full war uniform who saluted the casket, the stories of people who drove thousands of miles and spent 14 hours in line to spend 30 seconds viewing the casket lying in state.
These are people who LOVED Reagan. There are those who can’t understand this who attempt to rationalize this by attaching some comfortable explaination, one that doesn’t involve exemplifying Ronald Reagan. Thus, they hope to associate Reagan’s “image” as a reason, versus a sincere and genuine emotion that he inspired.
I’m one of those people who genuinely loved him. You CAN’T stir up the emotions displayed in this column otherwise.
Not ONE doctor has verified that Reagan had the early stages of Alzheimer’s. What Ron Jr. THINKS is irrelevant. Furthermore, you can’t both hold that doctors found Alzheimer’s and say that there was not enough known about it to diagnose it at that time, and that Ron Jr’s opinion is valid.
It comes down to a he-said he-said, with Ronald Reagan unable to defend himself. For those of us who loved him, who sees these accusations with no medical basis for this opinion, we are disgusted by junior’s need to stand on the shoulders of his dad for attention.
itsspideyman on January 15, 2011 at 1:58 PM
I’m not a leftist, I’m conservative,the truth is the truth. Reagan had a problem remembering what he was supposed to say on at least one or more occasions. I witnessed it my self.
G. on January 15, 2011 at 2:00 PM
I knew the president was suffering from a mental disorder when he said he had been to 57 states and that Austrian is a language. Tragic.
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 2:00 PM
It’s a lie. Outside doctors have examined his medical records… it’s a lie. Leftists hate Reagan and will do anything to destroy him… so they lie.
Reagan’s approach to the economy worked and the Socialists hate him for it… so they lie.
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 2:02 PM
mankai, its alright, chill out
G. on January 15, 2011 at 2:05 PM
fify, looks like you forgot the right word to use…I keeeed, I keeeed
Knott Buyinit on January 15, 2011 at 2:07 PM
Sorry I usualllly get it right ;-)
G. on January 15, 2011 at 2:18 PM
No it’s not. The Left have tried to smear Jefferson and Washington too. Ronald Reagan is one of the greatest Americans (in a real sense, not in the “I got through Hannity’s screener so I’m a great American” sense) and this revisionist sh!t pisses me off.
I lived through the 70s. Ronald Reagan opened my eyes to the futility of Keyenesianism and to the real dangers of the Soviet Union. I grew up in a Democratic home with a father who worked as a volunteer for McGovern (and he also ran for office twice as a Democrat). I became a Republican at age 18 just before the 1984 election and worked as a volunteer for Reagan and Helms while a freshman at NC State.
I can’t imagine another man like Reagan rising up in American politics (though I pray for one).
Anyone who dares to lie about the man out of political hate for the man will be seen as a foul, useless human being in my estimation.
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 2:19 PM
Ron:
You are such a good son. Your dad would be so proud of you.
tgillian on January 15, 2011 at 2:20 PM
I knew the president was suffering from a mental disorder when he said he had been to 57 states and that Austrian is a language. Tragic.
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 2:00 PM
LMAF..nothing else need be said!!
Lou on January 15, 2011 at 2:22 PM
You’re right mankai he was great pres, I live in NC still, Wilmington, do you still live NC? Anyway, my point was Reagan seemed to me to be having a problem late in his second term as I recall. I wasn’t trying to cast dispersions on his presidency just that I noticed a problem at the time. It may have been the beginning signs. My father-in-law(who has Alzheimer’s) started the same way, long before he was diagnosed with the disease.
G. on January 15, 2011 at 2:27 PM
Ski Wilmington…we get three inches, and Hamstead get’s eight inches.
If it just snows once every 10 years, I figure we get about 40 years of no snow…
right2bright on January 15, 2011 at 2:34 PM
It wasn’t just a “diagnose” this is the president, these tests are thorough, complete, and the history of these tests are looked at precisely…Reagan did not have Alzheimer’s during his presidency, it’s scientific, not “I saw him forget some words” so it must be true. I see Obama “forgetting” more now then before, stress does that, so I guess Obama has Alzheimer’s now?
right2bright on January 15, 2011 at 2:38 PM
Yea, that was strange, when my wife said they got 8 inches, I was incredulous,they’re only 10 to 12 miles away from where I live.(near Hewlett’s Creek)
G. on January 15, 2011 at 2:40 PM
Guess Ron, Jr. never heard this one: Honor your Mother and Father. Of course, as I recall, he always seemed to go out of his way to stick it to his father. If Maureen were alive she’d probably give her little stepbrother what for.
I hope Nancy “forgets” to mention him in the will.
Done That on January 15, 2011 at 2:44 PM
Yea…Not honoring your mother or father comes with a cost
G. on January 15, 2011 at 2:48 PM
This is going to be long…it just touches something close to home.
Did Reagan understand his “long goodbye” was to be forthcoming a lot faster than was let on as he left Office? I believe so.
I am not that young anymore. There are times when for the life of me I cannot recall a name or place a face of someone introduced to a month ago. But longer term? I am working on a bio of sorts…and the farther back the years, the more details remembered, right down to the odors and aromas of a particular place, and the sounds as well.
President Reagan has to have had experienced this…he knew.
That self-imposed seclusion at Rancho del Cielo, a place he had known for decades and decades makes more sense as I grow older.
It was old, no electricity if I recall, but it was familiar, it was a true comfort zone because he knew what was in every cabinet, on every shelf, in every drawer. It was his place. He was safe.
I understand this more today than I did 20 years ago.
I think his later years would have been terrible for him had he been moved to a sleek new modern condo somewhere or to a nice new home in a nice new neighborhood, you know, where everything is so convenient, hospitals, malls, recreation. He’d have been lost. It would have hurt, I imagine. He did end up in places like that but long after his perceptive abilities have long since gone.
I understand what you are trying to convey. I think.
His onset of this dread disease in no way diminishes Reagan as a man.
But how many families today are unwilling to talk about let alone let folks know that Mom or dad at in a home somewhere and under constant care because, frankly, they have no way to communicate what they are actually feeling, seeing, and because of that, we all assume that they are in a ambulatory vegetative state. Had a medical friend ask once a long time ago, what if they perceive everything but just can’t tell us? That, my friend is a scary thought.
If our attitudes about Alzheimer’s would improve and we not look upon it as some sort of defect of character (as most mental illness) but solely a defect of physiology, then perhaps the shock value Ron Jr. derived out of this would have no value whatsoever.
Ron’s Jr.’s revelation would more clearly serve to make Jr. look like a failed opportunist…which he is.
And yes, there were times when Nancy would offer a nudge or insert a word or otherwise give President Reagan a little kick start. My God, she loved the man. He loved her. It was obvious wherever they went. They were inseparable. Zwei Herzen einem Schlag, as the expression goes. And none of it was for the cameras, or to impress anyone.
I wasn’t all that gaga over Nancy, though, honestly, then or now. She was a bit aloof. Stiff even. But damned protective of her “Ronnie” which at times made the rest not matter.
So much about the man that too few have taken the time to look at with unjaundiced eyes.
coldwarrior on January 15, 2011 at 3:07 PM
I saw a little snippet of Ron’s interview w/ ABC and, based on that, this headline sensationalizes and distorts what he said (shocking, I know). The implication of the subsequent media stories is “we always knew Reagan was out-to-lunch and now we have proof! See?” Now if Ron doesn’t correct that, then I’ll go back to what I said earlier: He’s motivated by book sales and money.
ncborn on January 15, 2011 at 3:15 PM
coldwarrior
Thank you, well said.
G. on January 15, 2011 at 3:15 PM
Didn’t he speak at the 92 convention?
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 3:22 PM
Alzheimer may not be a bad thing. There’s a lot of evil doers who are VERY intelligent. Reagan may have been running on PURE wisdom. AKA running on the Tree of Life and not on the Tree of Good & Evil.
-
TwilightStruggler on January 15, 2011 at 3:36 PM
And? Who hasn’t? As AP said, “occasional memory lapses in an elderly person do not an Alzheimer’s diagnosis make.” Are we really this ignorant about Alzheimer’s? I get that it’s scary to think about, but come on.
My grandfather had it. Maybe that’s what it takes to get it.
Esthier on January 15, 2011 at 3:37 PM
Yep. He did. You could tell then he was slowing down, but…
He was telegraphing ObamaCare.
He did speak in 1994 during his 83rd birthday. It was more noticeable then, but he was still The Great Communicator.
The man was 20 years ahead of his time. God Bless You, Mr. President. I am grateful that I was a kid when he was POTUS. It shaped my political views even at a young age.
Dr.Cwac.Cwac on January 15, 2011 at 3:50 PM
Annin, you are an idiot and a fool…you do not disappoint us, you exceed our expectations of you on most every post.
right2bright on January 15, 2011 at 12:46 PM
She is one that removes all doubt that she is a fool just by opening her mouth…
theaddora on January 15, 2011 at 4:00 PM
I watched the 20/20 interview last night, it was sad. He also was nasty to Sarah Palin, saying there was no comparison to his father as some have said. He seemed to enjoy revealing things I would never do if it was my Dad. But then I love my Dad to bits.
wi farmgirl on January 15, 2011 at 4:11 PM
Ron Reagan Jr. and his sister Patti Reagan Davis were nothing more than attention whores who profited off their Dad for years/nay make that decades. Patti appears to have become a little more responsible and at least appears to be caring for her Mother Nancy as needed (to be commended for that).
I’ll never forget how Ron Jr. and Patti complained about having the same Horse and Clown/Clowns for their pool party / Birthday parties for years (like a couple of spoiled Hollywood brats).
Hey Ron………..lots of American serf children would have LOVED to have had the money to have ponies and a clown and a pool for their birthday parties every year instead of having parties at McDonalds or at Grandmas with only 3 or 4 friends you could invite.
Oddly enough the real “son” and rightful heir of the Reagan family is adopted son Michael.
PappyD61 on January 15, 2011 at 4:22 PM
translation; I am a dishonorable son in need of attention. The father that I slander today is the same guy that should’ve whooped my a$$ a few more times.
ted c on January 15, 2011 at 4:22 PM
How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child.
Dhuka on January 15, 2011 at 4:23 PM
Signs of an affliction Obama is suffering…..
“57 States”. “My Muslim faith”. “Marine Corpses”. Obama shakes Marines hand instead of saluting. Obama bangs his head on helicopter door. Obama makes fun of the disabled on Leno. Obama says 10,000 people died in Kansas. Thanks Sioux City when he was in Sioux Falls. Obama said Arkansas was closer to Kentucky than Illinois. Obama said his parents got together and had him because of the 1965 Selma march (Obama was born in 1961). Obama said we lacked sufficient numbers of translators for Afghanistan because they are all in Iraq (the two countries speak different languages). Obama said he didn’t know about the Hanford nuclear waste cleanup (he voted for the funding for it as a senator). “Iran is not a serious threat to the US”….(the next day he said:) “I’ve made it clear for years that the threat from Iran is grave.”
Okay, Dr. Anninca….diagnose Obama for us now.
csdeven on January 15, 2011 at 4:26 PM
For the Palinistas and SarahCuda Republican Grizzly
Guards,another political wh*re comments,Ron Jr. that is!
=========================================================
Ron Reagan Calls Sarah Palin A “Clown” On CNN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDR9niU2mlQ
canopfor on January 14, 2011 at 9:33 PM
Hey Ron….you can address the Alaskan Bozo as “Madame President” on January 20, 2013.
Your Dad would be smiling that the first Female president will be a Republican.
PappyD61 on January 15, 2011 at 4:27 PM
Typical conservative treachery: you don’t like Ron Jr’s message, so you discredit him.
Keeping it classy.
bifidis on January 15, 2011 at 4:34 PM
bifidis on January 15, 2011 at 4:34 PM
Is English a second language for you?
kingsjester on January 15, 2011 at 4:36 PM
I’ll stand by President Reagan.
Any youngster willing to listen will hear from me that Ronald Reagan was the best president we had in the 20th century.
BowHuntingTexas on January 15, 2011 at 4:43 PM
Can I trade an Alzheimered Reagan for the Commie POS in office now?
adamsmith on January 15, 2011 at 4:45 PM
Thanks kingsjester. This is the primary point.
itsspideyman on January 15, 2011 at 4:47 PM
Beautiful!
JellyToast on January 15, 2011 at 4:53 PM
I think Ron’s working some weird science here, perhaps along these lines: Conservatives are the first to consider Reagan a great president. If an Alzheimer’s president can be so great, then the right cannot complain when the left nominates evident lunatics in elections. ;-)
rasqual on January 15, 2011 at 5:05 PM
Given the left’s “thinking” process this sounds valid. :)
itsspideyman on January 15, 2011 at 5:08 PM
A shameful liar speaks.
Ron, nothing can take away the fact that your father led this Nation through perilous times. He did it with Strength, Grace, Dignity, Force and with the Approval of the People of the United States of America. Twice.
/Get over yourself, you ballerino.
Key West Reader on January 15, 2011 at 5:09 PM
Why is this coming out now?
They’ve tried desperately to pin the Tucson issue on Conservatives, the Tea Party, Palin, Beck, Limbaugh. Now this?
/Puleeze. If you thought 2010 was something, then…
You ain’t seen nothing yet!~
Key West Reader on January 15, 2011 at 5:13 PM
I met Ronald Reagan about a year after he left office.
Based on my memory of meeting him, it appeared that he didn’t have it.
Conservative Samizdat on January 15, 2011 at 5:14 PM
Do you really think a lying scumbag like Ron Jr would keep this a secret for a quarter of a century? Anyone who believes this for one second is sicker than this backstabbing coward, much sicker.
volsense on January 15, 2011 at 5:47 PM
Ron Reagan: My dad had Alzheimer’s while in office. And that only left him with twice the cognitive ability as the current CIC.
ndanielson on January 15, 2011 at 6:05 PM
This is another calculated hit by the political left. It is a lie.
Despite the calls for civility, the political left is going to become ever more vicious in the years ahead.
Phil Byler on January 15, 2011 at 6:27 PM
In reading the Reagan Diaries it was obvious that Ronald Reagan loved his son Ron Jr. But he made his Dad’s life miserable for much of the time he was in office & was a constant source of frustration for him.
kg598301 on January 15, 2011 at 6:51 PM
coldwarrior on January 15, 2011 at 3:07 PM
Well said.
Ronald Reagan’s character and job performance were of the highest caliber.
As far as accurately relating when symptoms occurred, I’d rely on Nancy’s account along with his physicians, and if occurring while in the White House, accounts from his Chief of Staff and Cabinet. \FDR’s polio certainly didn’t hold him back whether in “full vigor” during the Great Depression that he extended via mandates, or throughout WWII playing bff with Stalin./
GHWBush memoir might say something, but his style would more likely simply begin with his own presidency. It wasn’t as if the two were always politically on the same page, “Voodoo Economics”.
Little ron’s account, however, if first hand is without merit since little ron was not with President Reagan during the incidents little ron references. And if not first hand, little ron is regurgitating hearsay, without merit.
maverick muse on January 15, 2011 at 6:53 PM
He’s plain stupid, and so are his advisors.
Schadenfreude on January 15, 2011 at 6:56 PM
coldwarrior, be saluted. You are a great man.
Schadenfreude on January 15, 2011 at 6:57 PM
I just think the elevation of individuals is probably wrong-thinking.
It’s a perspective that wins elections.
AnninCA on January 15, 2011 at 8:27 PM
I think that’s also why our system is unique.
Presidents are always just a bit populist.
That’s how they get elected!
AnninCA on January 15, 2011 at 8:29 PM
Here’s Ann, continuing to say hateful things about Reagan. You’ve done this before; it’s despicable, and you should stop.
massrighty on January 15, 2011 at 8:45 PM
Most HA commenters and readers think you have the brains and insight of a dandelion. Consider.
DarkCurrent on January 15, 2011 at 8:56 PM
Hasn’t it been pretty obvious for years that this kid is a dipshite.
rrpjr on January 15, 2011 at 9:41 PM
That’s an impressive list. Hmmm . . . I wonder how they say “impressive” in Austrian. ~ ;-)
SoRight on January 15, 2011 at 9:42 PM
You still believe Bill Clinton was a great President. Even though he was the first elected President to be impeached, had his Justice Department successfully prosecute a female Federal employee for lying under oath about sex and later said he was above the law for the same felony crime, and then left his successor the 9/11 attacks.
After which, he had his former “National Security Advisor” steal and destroy classified documents from the National Archives so the 9/11 “Commission” wouldn’t blame him. He then successfully censored a TV movie about his negligence in the runnup to 9/11, and has also managed to suppress that film from being released on DVD.
‘Nuff said.
Del Dolemonte on January 15, 2011 at 10:20 PM
Anything is possible.
Reagan’s gunshot wounds were far more serious than what was told at the time. His cancer was far more serious than what was told at the time. Reagan’s eight years are filled with stuff we were not told.
If people covered up the fact that Reagan had Alz while in office, it’s not like they would admit that now. Who the hell knows what went on? We will probably never know, So, you an stick to your commemorative plate version of Ronald Reagan.
And, Del Dolemonte is funny. The far majority of America never cared about Clinton’s zipper. Only those that couldn’t beat Clinton in an election did. Everyone else thought it was funny, if they thought about it at all.
Now, many of those same people want Newt Gingrich to be POTUS. Somehow, it was just fine for Newt to whore around.
Moesart on January 15, 2011 at 11:15 PM
So Ron needs another 15 minutes, or what?
Yellowdog12 on January 15, 2011 at 11:17 PM
If he had ALZ as early as 84, by the time 1992 rolled around, I don’t think they’d let him speak at the convention. Eight years into ALZ is very serious.
Here is Reagan in 1992…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxL3OU1dwmI
No way he had signs of ALZ in 1984.
mankai on January 15, 2011 at 11:42 PM
Because anything is possible does not mean its probable.
Once again, here’s the main point:
Reagan’s doctors and Alzheimer’s specialists have been debunking this myth for years, but no matter how many times they try to explain that occasional memory lapses in an elderly person do not an Alzheimer’s diagnosis make, the narrative rolls on.
itsspideyman on January 16, 2011 at 12:05 AM
I didn’t know that Ron Jr. had become an M.D. However, assuming he’s correct, his father with Alzheimers still did a better job than anyone since.
flataffect on January 16, 2011 at 2:34 AM
Link for the Thread.
AnnInCa never fails to hit these Reagan Threads with sick remarks. And yet she claims to be a moderate. The fact that she doesn’t like Reagan shows that she isn’t even a BLUEDOG Dem.
Geochelone on January 16, 2011 at 5:22 AM
Why did he write about about his father, and not about his countless experiences as a dog show narrator/co-host? Isn’t that what matters to him most?
His expertise about dog breeds, each story of dog champions’ groomers, handlers and judges’ bios would be a great addition to any dog enthusiast collection, not this.
I like dog shows, and I always get mad of the stinkin’ Poodles stealing the attention of a perfect Great Pyrenees. Ron makes it interesting, entertaining and he enjoys what he does at every dog championship tournament.
I am gonna pull a Barbara and tell him to “stay there, that’s where he belongs.”
ProudPalinFan on January 16, 2011 at 8:15 AM
Did I get the right Reagan kid? I am confused now. One is loyal to him, the other one seems embarrassed by Reagan’s legacy.
ProudPalinFan on January 16, 2011 at 8:23 AM
Yeah, what you said…’cause I am not capable nor bold enough to write that stuff.
ProudPalinFan on January 16, 2011 at 8:28 AM
If you and I had a convo about this topic, I’d convince you otherwise. In private. Not even make it to Heaven. Yeap, that bad.
ProudPalinFan on January 16, 2011 at 8:30 AM
Could it be to paint conservative views as the sign of a damaged mind?
Regardless of any evidence to the contrary, the left will use thius as the single piece of credible evidence to smear Reagan.
John Deaux on January 16, 2011 at 10:36 AM
As Ron Sr. would say to his son, “there you go again”.
HellCat on January 16, 2011 at 10:39 AM
Palin gave him the disease.
angryed on January 16, 2011 at 10:43 AM
Another site excerpting Ron’s Money Grab places the surgery in Minnesota:
In July 1989, barely six months out of office, my father went out riding and was thrown by his horse. After refusing medical attention, he ultimately relented and was transported to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Surgeons opening his skull to relieve pressure on the brain emerged from the operating room with the news that they had detected probable signs of Alzheimer’s disease. Further tests conducted the following year confirmed those suspicions.
Oh well, still not buying the book just to find out the truth about an embellishment.
rukiddingme on January 16, 2011 at 11:34 AM
Nice to see Michael Reagan lay the wood to this pathetic no- talent worm.
What a worthless human being, capitalizing on his late father because he has absolutely nothing to offer on his own, unlike Michael.
jjshaka on January 16, 2011 at 11:54 AM
Isn’t that EXACTLY what the left has done to Palin, and others? However, in your attempts…you fail miserably.
capejasmine on January 16, 2011 at 12:14 PM
Ummmm, maybe because his medical records have been gone through by objective doctors. That virtually everyone who had worked with him on a daily basis has never noted what you think maybe was there. And that only his critics are the ones who find these “faults”.
Everyone is in on the cover-up is the only way your scenario plays out.
Ronnie has lived off the name, lived on disparaging the name of his father his whole life, so this commentary by him fits.
right2bright on January 16, 2011 at 12:38 PM
Could not the same be said for ANY President? Which advisors first told Clinton to lie about his relationship with Monica? How many in the White House know Obama’s the puppet?
capejasmine on January 16, 2011 at 12:50 PM
This is the lefts early attempts to marginalize anyone who emulates Reagan. A la Palin. If the left can run Reagan down (“even today’s repubs would label Reagan a RINO”) to the level that Republicans no longer look upon him as the kind of leader that saved the US from the cold war and restored its leadership role in the world power superstructure, the fiscal and soCon right would be less enthusiastic to embrace someone considered “Reagan-eaque”. Once again, a-la Palin. This isn’t REALLY about Reagan. Not as much as you might think.
Think extreme devious, and it becpmes very apparent what these turds are doing.
44Magnum on January 16, 2011 at 1:22 PM
When I was looking to adopt a dog back in early 2006, I was thoroughly entertained by RR Jr hosting a dog show on Animal Planet. I’m not quite sure why this part of his work history isn’t well known to all.
I think he was far more reliable and factual in that job and , so I applaud and second your idea that Ron Jr should return to his former occupation.
marybel on January 16, 2011 at 1:29 PM
I think this is the pattern; the Left believes because it wants to believe, and the Right shows over and over there is no credible evidence. Inuendo is not fact, and the facts are there is no credible evidence that Ronald Reagan had Alzheimer’s.
You said it jjshaka. Taking the 100th anniversary of his father’s birth to sell books is contemptable. Thank God Michael is there to speak up.
itsspideyman on January 16, 2011 at 1:36 PM
I know I am late to the posting party, but I did scroll through and skimmed the comments. I did not see anyone ask the following question.
If President Reagan did indeed show early Alzheimer’s, does it really matter at this point in time other than to sell books for Junior?
And as another poster correctly pointed out. If President Reagan really was having Alzheimer’s issues his last few years, then he was more awesome that we first believed. Imagine, all his age issues and he still had more brain power on his own than the collective brain power now exhibited in Washington.
Now where the hell did I put my keys and wallet? I really can’t find them right now and I haven’t left the house in a couple of days….. and I’m only 60.
I just think Junior was confusing “Senior Moments” with Alzheimer’s.
gstrickler on January 16, 2011 at 2:45 PM
A liberal friend said that it wasn’t important if it was true or not because Ron Jr was only trying to make a living. If anyone bought the book and spent money on lies then they deserved to waste their money. Do really libs really think like this?
volsense on January 16, 2011 at 5:02 PM
Hmmm. Alzheimers or not, Reagan still was a better president than our current golfer in chief who apparently suffers from terminal liberalism…
drfredc on January 17, 2011 at 1:13 AM
Lil Ronnie shouldn’t have added this to his book due out on his Dad’s 100 birthday. Unless he wanted to sell a few more books…
Skimming over this page’s (3) comments, it seems as most may not understand ALZ. While you might wake up one day and be diagnosed as having ALZ, one doesn’t just “contract” ALZ from one day to the next. ALZ seeds are planted years before any diagnosis is made. It’s entirely possible that RWR was suffering from symptoms of ALZ while POTUS but that doesn’t mean he would’ve been incompetent. That comes much later in the disease process. I don’t know what tests President Reagan was given (CTScan, MRI, PETScan) during his Presidency but I do know that medical science today can detect ALZ earlier in its progression than ever before. I know the left will seize on lil Ronnie’s “admission” in an attempt to diminish RWR. Refudiate with facts…dems don’t like facts…
Another point, RWR was sedated during surgery for his gunshot wound. Studies show that older persons are more prone to side effects of sedation than younger people. Not always but it happens…
Btw, the next leftist that says Giffords shooter couldn’t have been apolitical because he shot a politician –”remind” them that John Hinckley’s shot Reagan because of his lust for Jodie Foster, not for political reasons…
Gohawgs on January 17, 2011 at 3:48 AM
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