Harris accuses Trump of evading medical records

US Vice President Kamala Harris has accused Saturday Donald Trump for lack of transparency about his health after having published his own medical report, thus highlighting their almost 20-year age difference.

“It is clear to me that he and his team do not want the American people to really see what he does and whether or not he is actually fit to serve as President of the United States,” declared the Democratic candidate for the November 5 election.

“He is unfit to serve in this capacity,” she told reporters before leaving for the disputed state of North Carolina (southeast), recently devastated by Hurricane Helene.

A diagnosis that contrasts with the detailed medical report published Saturday by the White House, concluding that Kamala Harris, 59, has “the physical and mental stamina necessary to fulfill the duties of the presidency” of the United States and is “in excellent health.”

The Democratic candidate hopes to fuel a debate on the abilities of her 78-year-old Republican rival.

Donald Trump's campaign team responded by assuring in a statement that the former president's fitness had nothing to envy of Kamala Harris's, quite the contrary.

Former US President and Republican candidate Donald Trump during a roundtable with representatives of the Hispanic community in Las Vegas, USA, on October 12, 2024 © AFP – RONDA CHURCHILL

For Steven Cheung, communications director for Donald Trump's campaign, she has a “much lighter” schedule than that of his opponent, because, he claims, she does not have “President Trump's stamina.”

The Republican candidate has already voluntarily published several reports from doctors that “all conclude that Donald Trump is in perfect and excellent health,” his spokesperson added.

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Steven Cheung refers in particular to a letter from Donald Trump's personal physician in which he mentions normal physical exam results and “exceptional” cognitive test results. But these exams already date back to September 2023.

– “What is he hiding ?” –

And the Harris camp has redoubled its attacks.

“On August 20, Donald Trump said he would +gladly+ publish his medical records. He did not do so,” a spokesperson for the Democrat's campaign, Ian Sams, declared on X.

“What is he hiding?,” he asked, pointing to the former president's refusal to debate Kamala Harris again after their televised contest in September.

Questions about Joe Biden's age, robustness and mental acuity dogged his campaign, until the 81-year-old Democratic president threw in the towel in July after a disastrous debate with his Republican predecessor (2017-2021).

The issue has since been rarely discussed in the media and has had no notable influence on the polls, which are still very close.

This is despite the large age difference between the two candidates and Donald Trump's increasingly pronounced tendency towards digressions and rambling speeches, as the New York Times noted in a recent article.

The vice president would therefore like to bring the subject back into the spotlight, to the advantage of the Democrats this time.

Joe Biden and Donald Trump at a ceremony commemorating the September 11 attacks, in New York, September 11, 2024 © AFP – ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS

Donald Trump, at the undeniable physical presence, still maintains a very sustained rhythm of travel and meetings, and does not show fatigue comparable to that which often marks the gait, features and speech of Joe Biden.

The former president is Saturday evening in Coachella, California, for a meeting before another the next day in Arizona, a key state in the Southwest.

According to the polls, the age of the candidates is not an important subject for a large part of the voters.

A Gallup opinion poll published on October 10 indicates that 41% of voters consider Donald Trump too old to be president, barely 4 points more than in June, before Kamala Harris entered the race.

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