Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - Is Bush ill? He looks like he's sufferred a stroke.

During the third debate, it was very apparent to me that the left side of
Bush's mouth displayed an obvious droop when he was not speaking. When I
searched the internet after the debate, I found nothing on this subject that
verified that anyone else had noticed the same thing. I found nothing in these
searches, and I suspected I was influenced by a similar facial expression of
a family member who recently suffered a stroke that left her with a similar
"look" to what I detected on Bush's face. Now....new searches reveal that
I'm not the only one who noticed.......

Quote:

After watching the third presidential debate Wednesday night, Dr. W. Kendall Tongier, M.D. of Dallas, Texas posted on the Dallas Morning News Web site about his concerns that the President may have had a stroke. The anesthesiologist, who has been in practice for 15 years, wrote: "Having watched the first two debates from start to finish, I was looking forward to listening to a spirited debate between Bush and Kerry. Unfortunately, I barely heard a word that was said. Instead, I found myself staring at and concentrating on the President's drooping mouth.

"As a physician and a professor, I tend to pick up on signs and symptoms of physical problems better than most other people. I am highly concerned with what I saw. The drooping left side of the President's face, his mouth and nasolabial fold (the crease in the face running from the nostril to the side of mouth) may be indicative of a recent stroke, TIA (transient ischemic attack)) or, possibly botox injections. I sincerely hope this was nothing more than botox injections. The other options are truly scary given an upcoming election for President in three weeks." In a phone interview, Dr. Tongier stressed that he's not a neurologist, and no doctor can make a diagnosis from a 90-minute debate. But he did explain why he found Bush's face so distracting Wednesday night: "It struck me across the face to the point where I wasn't really listening to the debate. It looked like the left side of his mouth was downturned. You know how he sneers at times. At first I thought that's what it was, but it didn't change when his face was at rest. It changed when he talked, but you'd expect that. It's the loss of muscle tone there that's really kind of concerning. And it was pretty much persistent throughout the entire debate."

Dr. Tongier isn't the only one wondering if the President's had a stroke. And the fact that President Bush skipped his annual check-up this year, right before the election is only fanning the speculation.

Dr. Tongier, who says that he's a Kerry supporter, but that "my medical opinion is non-partisan," adds that Bush's drooping could well be nothing to be alarmed about: "It certainly could be something as benign as an overzealous botox injection, which causes the paralysis, which is essentially how botox works. A lot of people will get them around the nasolabial fold to decrease those lines. If it's botox, it can be a short-term reaction after an injection. It could last for 24 hours and be gone. But I'd like to see the Bush campaign at least give an explanation." <a href=""></a>

<a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=bush+mouth+droop+stroke&btnG=Google+Search">http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=bush+mouth+droop+stroke&btnG=Google+Search</a>

And there are reports that Bush has postponed his yearly physical exam.
(taken in the month of August in the three previous years):

Quote:

Bush postpones election-year doctor's visit
Washington News

- WASHINGTON (AFP) Tuesday October 05, 2004

After undergoing his annual medical check-up in August 2001, 2002 and 2003, US President George W. Bush has put the procedure off this year until after the November 2 election, his spokesman said.

Bush, locked in a neck-and-neck race for the White House with Democratic Senator John Kerry, is in "great health" and got the green light for the decision from his doctors, spokesman Scott McClellan told AFP.

"This has been a busier travel period for the president than the previous three years," the spokesman said.

Bush, 58, is known as an avid physical fitness buff who switched from running to mountain biking earlier this year after hurting his knee.

"The president, like other Americans, talked with his doctors about when to have his physical. They felt it was perfectly fine to do it later this year," said McClellan. "The president is an active person who is physically fit and in great health."

Bush underwent his three previous physicals as president in the first week of August in 2001, 2002 and 2003. He was given a clean bill of health after all three.<a href="http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20041005/pl_afp/us_vote_bush_health_041005233908">http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20041005/pl_afp/us_vote_bush_health_041005233908</a>

Either this entire post is baseless, or the supposed "liberal media" is giving
Bush a near total "pass" on this news about his undisclosed health problems!