What Is the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, the Test Used to Evaluate Trump?
The president scored 30 out of 30.
On Tuesday, Navy and White House physician Dr. Ronny Jackson announced the results of President Donald Trump’s physical conducted last Friday. Jackson told reporters he felt confident that the 71-year-old president would make it through his term without medical issues and that Trump “has absolutely no cognitive or mental issues whatsoever.”
Jackson also explained that Trump had personally requested that he undergo a cognitive exam, a decision some speculate was an effort to squash rumors that his behavior and decision-making were signs of cognitive decline. In the book Fire and Fury, journalist Michael Wolff writes that White House staffers are concerned about the president’s mental stamina. The president himself has consistently said he is mentally well, often using his alleged high IQ test scores as an illustration of mental stability.
The test Trump took is the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, which Jackson argued was “sensitive enough” to determine whether the president has any serious cognitive issues. The test is not a measurement of intelligence, but rather a standard and globally accepted form of screening for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. The test takes ten minutes, a score of 26 or above is considered normal, and the total possible score is 30. Jackson announced that Trump received 30 out of 30.
If you’d like to try it out yourself, here it is:
The total possible score is 30.
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment is designed to be a “rapid screening instrument for mild cognitive dysfunction.” It assesses attention and concentration, executive functions, memory, language, visuoconstructional skills, conceptual thinking, calculations, and orientation. While it may look rather straightforward, it is considered by experts a precise tool it determining early cognitive impairment rendered by age-related mild dementia.
“I’ve found no reason whatsoever to think the president has any issues whatsoever with his thought process,” Jackson announced, adding that when he and the president speak, “he’s very articulate.”
Jackson also explained that Trump is the first president to undergo a cognitive test during his annual physical. If Representative Brendan Boyle (D) gets his way, Trump won’t be the last. His proposed “Stable Genius Act” would require all presidential candidates to undergo a physical and mental evaluation under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Navy.
