President Donald Trump is interviewed by Fox News presenter Chris Wallace
Screenshot via Fox News
- Earlier this month, President Trump said he had “passed” a recent cognitive test on Fox News.
- Trump said Fox News’ Chris Wallace and presidential candidate Joe Biden were unable to answer the questions.
- The test was probably the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA), which measures cognitive function and helps diagnose disease.
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Fox News host Chris Wallace questioned Trump about his cognitive abilities Sunday, taking the same diagnostic test Trump took.
—Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) July 19, 2020
Trump told Wallace that the questions become more difficult as the test progresses and said: “You couldn’t answer many of the questions.”
When Trump asked how the test went, Wallace said, “Well, it’s not the most difficult test. They have a picture and it says ‘what’s that’ and it’s an elephant.”
“No, no, no … You see, this is all misrepresentation,” Trump said, and Wallace replied, “Well, that’s what was on the web.”
“Everything is misrepresentation. Because, yes, the first questions are easy, but I bet you can’t even answer the last five questions. I bet you can’t, they get very difficult, the last five questions,” Trump said. “Well, one of them counted from 100 to seven,” Wallace said.
Washington Post journalist Seung Min Kim published a transcript of the exchange.
—Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) July 19, 2020
On Twitter, many doctors and experts chimed in, suggesting that the test was likely the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA), which is used to assess patients for cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s. The test, which lasts about ten minutes, requires patients to identify pictures, draw a clock, and do some memory exercises, as described by the Washington Post.
—Ankur Dave, MD (@AnkurDaveMD) July 19, 2020
Fox News showed a variation of the test during the segment.
Fox News
In the same interview with Wallace, Trump challenged Biden to take the exam.
“Let’s do a test right now. Let’s go down, Joe and I will do a test. Let him take the same test as me,” he said. In June, Biden said he “is constantly being tested.”
