Trump’s ‘very famous doctor’ speaks: 8 bizarre quotes from Dr. Harold Bornstein
It has been just over a year since Dr. Harold Bornstein, President-Elect Donald Trump’s personal physician, released a now famous letter declaring that, “If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency.”
Bornstein’s profile exploded, in part because he shared his patient’s penchant for excessive verbiage (his letter also paid homage to Trump’s “astonishingly excellent” lab test results and “extraordinary” strength and stamina) and his kooky appearance: shoulder-length hair, round tortoise-shell glasses and a rotation of black turtlenecks that would put most beatniks to shame.
In a new interview with STAT News — his first since the election — Bornstein lived up to his eccentric reputation, sounding off on everything from the virility of the president-elect to the fate that awaits his interviewer.
He also casually shrugged off the interviewer’s suggestion that Trump’s age (at 70, he’s the oldest president-elect) could present problems when he becomes commander-in-chief.
“If something happens to him [Trump], then it happens to him. It’s like all the rest of us, no? That’s why we have a vice president and a speaker of the House and a whole line of people. They can just keep dying,” he said.
Here’s a sampling of the craziest revelations from that exclusive interview:
On Trump’s age:
“It never occurred to me that he was the oldest president, not for a second,” Bornstein said, adding that Trump isn’t “an old man the way grandfather was an old man.” (This apparently runs counter to Trump’s former opponent, Hillary Clinton, who he deemed “an old lady.”)
On rivalries:
Bornstein told STAT he ran into Dr. Lisa Bardack, Hillary Clinton’s physician, during the campaign and was ready with a gift for her: a Trump pin.
On whether presidents have an obligation to regularly share details of their health:
“Ronald Reagan had pre-senile dementia. I mean, seriously, did they share that one with you, or did Nancy just cover it up?”
On his clout in the media industry:
Five days after his interview with the STAT reporter, Bornstein tried to stop the article from being published, saying, “I happen to have known the Sulzbergers [the family that publishes the New York Times] for 50 years. I’m going to make sure you don’t ever work again if you do this.”
On adult education:
Bornstein revealed he sought out women on Craigslist to teach him Italian, taking private lessons weekly for 10 years. The back of his business card reads “dottore molto famoso,” meaning “very famous doctor.”
On his endeavors outside of medicine:
Bornstein’s high school band, Doc Bornstein and the Interns, played dances, weddings and private parties. (Bornstein was earlier outed by STAT as an amateur poet who signed his verses as “Count Harold.”)
On doctor-patient nepotism:
Bornstein told STAT that aside from a photo of him and Trump in his office, he didn’t publicize their relationship or use his celebrity adjacency for any perks, and that he’s only asked Trump for one thing: a job for his 18-year-old son volunteering with the campaign.
