For weeks, Donald Trump has fueled speculation that President Joe Biden might be high on drugs in their 90-minute presidential debate on Thursday.
‘DRUG TEST FOR CROOKED JOE BIDEN??? I WOULD TAKE ONE IMMEDIATELY TOO!!!’ Trump wrote on social media this week.
Echoing these demands, Ronny Jackson, a Republican congressman, Trump supporter and President Barack Obama’s White House doctor, sent a letter to the current White House doctor on Monday asking that Biden get tested before the showdown.
The Biden campaign responded Wednesday, dismissing Team Trump’s demands as “silly.” And Biden campaign spokeswoman Adrienne Elrod noted that the former president leveled almost the same accusations against Hillary Clinton before her debates in 2016, as he did against Biden before they faced off for the first time in 2020.
In fact, there was no evidence then or now that teetotalers Biden or Clinton ever used or even contemplated using “performance-enhancing” substances during the debates.
President Joe Biden, 81, continues to show signs of physical and mental decline, but there is no evidence that he is using performance-enhancing drugs to get through the day.
However, wild speculation has raised questions among voters and in the media: Do debate juice drugs even exist?
Brett O’Donnell, a veteran Republican consultant who has groomed top GOP contenders for decades, said he has never found any “miracle drug” capable of transforming a candidate into a debate-stage dynamo.
O’Donnell, who has trained the likes of President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain, recalled that some candidates received injections of vitamin B-12 in hopes of sharpening their concentration and increasing their energy levels.
And as director of Debate at Liberty University for nearly two decades, O’Donnell said some of his students swore by bee pollen: a natural mixture of flower pollen, bee secretions, honey, wax and enzymes.
Neither supplement, in O’Donnell’s opinion, makes much of a difference.
He suggests Biden and Trump lean on Red Bull and energy drinks for proven results.
Last week, podcaster Joe Rogan proposed that the president’s team “dump” him with “cognitive enhancers” like Adderall, testosterone and human growth hormone.
‘DRUG TEST FOR CROOKED JOE BIDEN??? I WOULD TAKE ONE IMMEDIATELY TOO!!!’ Trump wrote on social media this week.
Bob Reilly, crew chief, and cameraman Chris Hanson, above, both of CSpan, ready for the upcoming CNN presidential debate.
US President Joe Biden waves as he walks towards Marine One. The president has spent the week preparing for the first presidential debate of 2024
But Dr. Carole Lieberman, a physician and psychiatrist, who has raised questions about Biden’s mental fitness in the past, told DailyMail.com that some of Rogen’s prescriptions seem exaggerated.
“Pharmaceutical stimulants like Adderall,” Lieberman said, risk raising heart rate and blood pressure to dangerous levels.
Testosterone can cause blood clots and cause sudden mood swings, especially when a person is under pressure.
All of these, surely, would be unacceptable risks for a Commander in Chief.
Rogan also suggested that Biden has administered ‘NAD infusions and intravenous vitamin infusions several days in a row’ in the lead-up to the showdown.
NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) is a coenzyme that may be prescribed to boost the metabolism of aging people. IV infusions can quickly address vitamin deficiencies.
This combination of photos taken in Columbia, South Carolina, shows former President Donald Trump, left, on Feb. 24, 2024, and President Joe Biden on Jan. 27, 2024. The clash between Biden and Trump on Thursday, the 27th June may be the most consequential presidential debate in decades.
In an aerial view, posters for a CNN presidential debate are seen outside its studios inside Turner Entertainment Networks.
Dr. Lieberman said both treatments can gradually help you focus and concentrate, but there are possible side effects, such as brain fog.
The drug modafinil is a non-amphetamine stimulant that is commonly prescribed to treat extreme sleepiness due to narcolepsy or other sleep disorders, such as Biden’s sleep apnea.
In March, the president’s physician, Kevin O’Connor, revealed that Biden had begun using a continuous positive airway pressure machine to treat the condition.
However, Dr. Lieberman said she doubted the president’s doctor would prescribe such a powerful drug.
Treating moderate sleep apnea with modafinil would be like “using a hammer to kill a fly,” he said, and the drug’s worrisome side effects, including headache, nausea, nervousness and dizziness, would likely outweigh any potential benefits.
Dr. Elizabeth Landsverk, author of the book Living in the Moment: A Guide to Overcoming Challenges and Finding Moments of Joy in Alzheimer’s and Other Dementia, warned that artificial medications like Adderall would be too risky for both Biden and Trump.
“Rather than improving their debating skills, taking stimulants of this type will diminish their performance, making them appear ‘excited’, irritable, confused and unable to filter out the inappropriate,” he said.
He also expressed concern about Biden’s advanced age, which would make it dangerous for him to take pharmaceutical stimulants, warning of a heart attack or stroke.
“Stimulants, other than a cup of coffee, would not improve but rather decrease the performance of a debate,” he said. “Instead, I would recommend getting a good night’s sleep the night before and going for a brisk walk right before to get the blood flowing.”
Medical experts contacted by DailyMail.com concluded that there is really only one way for an 81-year-old man – or anyone – to physically prepare for a public debate.
Get enough sleep, a healthy diet and a strong cup of coffee.
