Comments

1
We need a jump STAT.
2
Why not just replace it.

I hear Rush Limbaugh isn't using his.
3
Let me be the first to state the obvious: plenty of room in there for his hand, or a half-dozen of them if you pushed.
4
He knocked his head on the barn door during a vigorous round of horse fucking--you heard it here first.
5
Gus is right - somebody teach this guy how to do a jump.
6
This post's length has caused blood to start pooling in my skull...
7
Whew. Now let me say, helluva story - thank you!
8
I have questions about the sanity of ANY retired top serial-killer hunting supercop who's still sticking with The Republican Guard. In spite of their posturing, it's the right who're soft on crime, short on justice.
9
So, basically, he hasn't been in his right mind for HOW long?

Wowsers.
10
From the way you've described the injury it seems to make him a shoe in for Tea Party support. His numbers will probably skyrocket.
11
From what I can tell, brain damage is a requirement, not a drawback, for Republican candidates.

Interesting - I hadn't heard about this before.
12
I don't agree with Reichart politically, but I can't feel any Schadenfreude-ian glee at his health problems.
13
I don't agree with Reichart politically, but I can't feel any Schadenfreude-ian glee at his health problems. I hope his team can convince him to step down.
14
Luckier @13,

Well, as easy as it would have been (the jokes kinda write themselves), I tried not to have fun with this. I hope Reichert loses, but I don't wish him ill health.

The point is, we're electing a congressman here who quite possibly has a significant neurological impairment. I think that's a question that should be addressed, if only by Reichert publicly debating DelBene so that we can see for ourselves whether he has his full faculties. (Or as full as they've ever been. Like I said, the jokes write themselves).
15
If Reichert is really suffering from irreversible brain damage, he should be in the Senate, not the House. He can hang out with Jim Bunning and John McCain. The House is for CRAZY people, not those with tissue damage.
16
You did a really good job on this article Goldy... This should be published in a major newspaper or put on a wire service. Much like Senator Jim Bunning has Alzheimer's disease, it is obvious there is something wrong with Reichert.
17
Reichert's answer to Robert Pak's question, kind of reminds me of Sarah Palin's infamous answer to Katie Couric's interview of Palin in 2008.
18
damn. @15 ftw.
19
Politics aside, I'm sure I'm not the only anxious hypochondriac worrying about a pool of blood on the brain after reading this.
20
Seems like the most humane reason not to re-elect Reichert is so that he can get the treatment & rehab he needs. Being a Congressman, not matter how unimportant or lazy, is pretty taxing. The lack of campaign effort really looks like someone trying to recover from brain surgery, not duck the issues. Good thing he has that sweet health care plan to take care of him. Most of the uninsured would probably die from something like that.

I don't live in that district, but it would be a shame for it to lack serious representation. Is DelBene any better than Marcy D'arcy?
21
I do not want the taxpayers to be covering Reichert's medical bills.
22
Bloggers are not considered "journalists"!!!???

Although evidentially partisian (and in a good way!) this was the most in depth story I've seen on the campaign in the 8th District. Without delving too much into his privacy I think it is fair to ask him if his injury is impairing his job.
23
Since when is intellectual disability a liability for any Republican?

Sadly, the district still has not attracted a really strong Democratic candidate, although there are several eligible folks sitting in the state legislature. Again, we have a candidate who has no previous elective office experience. That's fine if you're running for city council or school board; not so good when you're running for a national seat. Not that Reichert had any credible experience either, but he had - and still has - name recognition, which is the trump card in most politics. I like Del Bene just fine, and I'll certainly vote for her, but I could wish it were Ross Hunter or Deb Eddy or Pat Sullivan running for this seat instead.
24
I guess a pool of blood in his brain the size of his hand is likely even bigger than the middle finger for Bush that Reichert got that school bus driver fired for. Good luck to him, I guess.
25
@14

Thank you for the hand-wringing, and I'd like to point out something you've missed: Reichert's job makes him responsible for the direction, health, economic strength & moral stance of this nation of over 300 million. Simply put, it is an absolute necessity to hold our national politicians to the highest standard possible. Reichert's votes and actions have deliberately led this nation into the economic chaos it 'enjoys,' as well as it's pathetic & cruel health care, which scores among the lowest of industrial nations on any criteria you wish to measure. Unfortunately, the bastards and assholes who have created this mess won't be held accountable. It is a beautiful miracle that nature is doing what our leaders are too cowardly to do. He won't rot in jail like he deserves, but at least his brain is slowly leaking out through his ears. I hope he spends the rest of his life crapping his nappies and being spoon-fed tasteless gruel. It's more than he deserves.
26
Thought provoking article. If only there was a link in the side bar to take me to the well spring of this thoughtful analysis, instead of a link to "beyonce clown".
27
I'm sorry, Goldy. I've always been a fan of Horses Ass, but this article is in terrible taste. I'm a little disappointed, to be honest. Tear down the guy's political hypocrisy if you want—I'll giggle along with you at his ridiculous excuse for answers in the interview you linked, especially with regard to WSR—but I don't agree with the premise of this article in the slightest.
28
Sam @27,

Geez... read the medical literature I linked to. Injuries like this in people his age often result in some form of long term or even permanent impairment. Substantial recovery is likely, but "substantial" does not equal total.

So what...? We're not supposed to write about this because it's what? Mean?

I could've had a field day making fun of Reichert, and it would have made for a damn more entertaining post, but I didn't. I laid out a reasonable case for why one might suspect he's suffering from some sort neurological impairment. All he has to do to prove me wrong is do what what we expect of any candidate: publicly debate his opponent.
29
Reichert isn't debating delBene because he doesn't have to. Most of the electorate can't tell the difference between her and the loser who ran against and lost to him twice. Why should he go out of his way to help her publicize herself?
30
@27: Reichert is a politician with considerable responsibility. His health and mental capacity are certainly appropriate topics of public discourse insofar as they affect his ability to perform his duties.

Moreover, one can feel sympathy for the man while questioning his ability to do his job.
31
Great post!
32
Indeed, despite a persistent headache, Reichert had been blithely walking around—and casting votes—with a bleeding, compressed brain for at least two months.


At the risk of making light of someone's possibly intellectually disabling injury, I've assumed that the above describes most of the Republicans in Congress... and for a lot longer than two months.
33
I don't know, he sounded like an ignorant chump in his debates with Darcy Burner and it didn't seem to hurt him any.
34
shooter @29,

So what you're saying is, in a democracy, if a candidate can get away without debating his opponent, good for him. He has no obligation whatsoever to talk to the press or publicly engage on the issues, especially if it might show him to be, by comparison, unqualified, ill prepared or even brain-damaged.

Huh. Welcome to Dave Reichert's America.
35
@6 You had to spend FIVE WHOLE MINUTES reading a thorough exploration of a major state political figure's fitness? Go read a Tweet. Grown-ups are talking here.
36
Reichert's camp could at least send a petri dish filled with the blood-tainted cerebrospinal fluid to the debate. It might do better in the venue than Dave "I've seen the heartbeat of a stem cell" Reichert....
37
@Goldy, not to be picky, but you didn't link to any medical literature, you linked to websites that talk about general medical conditions. I think medical websites are substantially less reputable than medical literature.

Also, I think there's a HUGE difference between knowing what happens to 80 to 90 percent of people with chronic SDH and what is happening to Dave Reichert specifically. It sounds like you have some good questions here that could lead you to start investigating a story, but I hardly think you reach the threshold of going to publication with this ... especially since you're violating someone's medical privacy. You better be extra careful before you start talking about a public official's brain. This is not a laughing matter. This is personal and private. Put yourself in his position. This type of information should not go out unless you are sure.

Also, in terms of not appearing in public and avoiding the media, after brain surgery, even if he is slated for full recover, there is a huge fatigue factor. And as far as you know, that could be all it is.
38
Jessica K @37,

Reichert is a public figure. An elected official. A congressman. His medical issues ceased to remain private once he chose to be a public official. Furthermore, it is Reichert's description of the extent of his injury that I am citing; he can't very well go on TV attempting to evoke sympathy for his near death experience, and then claim that his health is a private matter.

As to citing websites, I cited the UCLA Medical Health Systems Neurology website, not Bob's Brain Blog.

The problem with your assertion, that this doesn't meet the threshold of going to publication, is that without Reichert's cooperation, one can never meet such a threshold for publication. Thus all Reichert needs to do to avoid public speculation about his possible neurological impairment is to continue to stay quiet and out of sight.
39
Maybe he could resign.

That would have been the proper thing to do - BEFORE the Primary.
40
@37 - Goldy, although I agree with your statement that Reichert's public talk about his injury puts it in the public arena, your article amounted to nothing more than a compilation of Google searches for 'brain injuries.' Without information about his specific condition, you have written nothing but a baseless, presumptive hit piece. Reichert's made many appearances, both public and private over the past several months - he's been working (publically) in DC the rest of the time. Check the Congressional Record. Your leap to questioning whether he is fit to serve is insulting. You didn't question the service fitness of Senator Tim Johnson's who was absent 8+ months from the US Senate after a brain injury.

@25 - SomeOldNodaddy - you sicken me. Although karma is often sweet, I don't even wish what you said in your comment for you..........disgusting as you most certainly are.
41
"I cited the UCLA Medical Health Systems Neurology website, not Bob's Brain Blog."

That made me laugh.

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