What if the President had, say, Binswanger's Disease?

[Benbow]

How would everyone around him deal with it? (Binswangers is a rare form of dementia that usually kills within five years.) What is the protocol for dealing with a President who becomes "unfit" - by reason of dementia - to be President while still in office? Who in the present administration would stand to gain by keeping the unfit President in situ, somehow, until he died? Eg people making a lot of money out of contracts in Iraq? Eg someone whose position owes everything to his long friendship with GWB, and who would lose all that - money, security, prestige, sense of being important and influential - were someone other than GWB to be President?

What if Gannon was part of a "safety cordon", a deliberate organised protective "screen" around GWB? His role being to prevent the most trenchant of journalist questions even scratching the President. And perhaps he was chosen because he presented as a tractable candidate, vain, easily blackmailed, with weak morals. Gannon is in an impossible situation, now, but one of his own choosing: if he spills the beans, he's dead; and until he's dead he's a risk to those who enlisted him, so he's still dead. From what I have seen so far, he is not enough of a strategic thinker to manage his way out of this. I bet that he is using attorneys chosen for him by the White House.

If any of this is close to the truth, then be sure that those closest to the President - and those with the most to lose - are even now working at a damage-limitation strategy. I can see it, actually: if Republicans were told, We did all this OUT OF LOYALTY TO GWB and America, they would swallow it, hook, line and sinker.

Just my three ha'pence'orth. (I am a Brit who would like to see America great again, for the right reasons, not for being the world's bully.)

[SpiralHawk]

1. The Dreaded Binswanger Scenario

Have you had your monthly checkup?

[Benbow]

2. Classic Republican abusive, content-empty response

You will forgive me when I say that your response is classic Republican abusive stuff. You will understand, therefore, if I now ignore all your posts.

[sickinohio]

3. Hope he's had it for - say - 4 1/2 years

[Benbow]

4. Giggle

:-)

[sickinohio]

5. welcome to DU

:toast:

[Benbow]

6. Thank you - this forum really restored my faith in good-hearted Americans

No bullshit. I thought that the heartless, jingoistic, ignorant messages posted by Americans participating on the comments sections of the Iraqi blogs that I have spent far too much time reading for the past 18 months were typical of all Americans. I now know that they are not. And that is entirely thanks to DU. No exaggeration. It has been a revelation. (I do know/have known a few Americans personally but I just assumed that they were unusually normal and intelligent and compassionate - and, anyway, they were over here in the UK!)

[BrklynLiberal]

7. "Gannon" should "spill the beans" loudly and publicly before his is found

either dead by "suicide"" in a hotel room, dead due to a one-car traffic accident on a lonely road in the middle of the nite, or the victim of a small aircraft crash. His only chance of staying alive is to make public eveything he knows as soon as possible.

[DoYouEverWonder]

9. He's made too much noise

for them to try to kill him now. Unless of course they are really desperate, which they are.

BTW: Welcome to DU :hi:

I'm glad you found us.

[saltpoint]

8. Hello, Benbow, and welcome.

You have already educated me with your post, as I had never heard of Binswanger's Disease. Thank you.

The possibility of Dubya's having it is fascinating. Perhaps his is the rare incidence of a 5-10-year trajectory, as evidenced by his halting, what-am-I-saying speech. I know the succession clause in the Constitution is under review and that there is some pressure to make the Secretary of State higher up in the succession list (and dear god let it kick in AFTER Condoleeza). At one point I believe Strom Thurmond would have been third -- or fairly close -- to executive control. A frightening and dispiriting thought.

You folks across the pond have been at this democracy/republic thing longer than we have, and frankly, we just don't have a damned idea what to do. Certainly Reagan was imbecilic long prior to his diagnosis, nevermind the public announcement. His immediate successor would have been Dubya's daddy. Two presidents earlier, Gerald Ford would have given over first to an unelected vice president (Nelson Rockefeller), and then later to Bob Dole.

So not only is the process a bit of a muddle, our selections have left much to be desired as well.

Your post was a lift for me.

[patricia92243]

11. I honestly think Cheny would e a LOT worse than Bush.

[saltpoint]

13. Right. I'm in no hurry to promote Dick Cheney.

[Benbow]

12. I know something about Binswanger's only because my father has it

And the actual onset can be YEARS, I understand, before it becomes a noticeable problem.

| You folks across the pond have been at
| this democracy/republic thing longer than
| we have, and frankly, we just don't have
| a damned idea what to do.

Oh, I am sure that you do. What the Brits have, which at times like this helps, is an established tradition of one-issue pressure groups. It is accepted at national government level that this is how Brits can change things, and although there are some loony pressure groups there have been far more respected, dogged, and ultimately successful pressure groups. These can be very powerful - change law, even - and you just ignore your enemies calling you "a one-trick pony" because you become a world expert on that "trick" which is more than your enemies will ever manage.

The thing is to identify and capture the moral high ground and stay focused. There will be times of high elation, and times of deep depression and asking "is this worth all the hassle" but, if the prize is worthy winning, you will win.

What we, in the UK, don't have is an equivalent to the Patriot Act. That is one creepy bit of legislation. Our Official Secrets Act is not the same sort of thing at all: you are bound by the Official Secrets Act only if you have actually signed it, not bound just by being British.

[saltpoint]

14. Yes. The Patriot Act is one of the most cynical bills ever.

I'm not proud of our Congress for being bullied into passing it, or rather, caving into the bullies who wanted it passed.

"Creepy" is exactly the right word.

[Vinnie From Indy]

10. Who knows, but your on the right track using words that have "WANG" or

"wanger" in them. I am sure that has something to do with all this.