Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney today released this doctor’s note
from his longtime physician, Dr. Hamilton Tennace.
To Whom It May Concern:
I have been Willard Mitt Romney’s personal physician for the past thirty-two years.
In that capacity, I believe I am uniquely qualified to address the issue of whether
Mr. Romney left hispost at Bain Capital in 1999, as he has said he did, or in 2002,
as actual facts seem to suggest.
I treated Mr. Romney throughout his tenure at Bain. During those years,
I found him to be healthy, fit, and tan, but not dangerously so. From a health
standpoint, those years were uneventful for Mr. Romney, with one notable exception.
In 1999 I received an urgent call from Bain headquarters indicating that Mr. Romney
had suffered a serious accident. Once I arrived on the scene, I learned that Mr. Romney
had participated in a “going away party” to celebrate the end of his tenure at Bain and
that he had been hit in the forehead with an exploding champagne cork. After he spent
several days in the hospital for observation, it became clear to me that Mr. Romney was
suffering from symptoms consistent with head trauma, including severe memory loss.
For example, he could not remember several key episodes from his youth, including thet
Time he pinned a gay student to the ground and cut off his hair.
After I advised his partners at Bain that Mr. Romney’s recovery from this head trauma
could be difficult and prolonged, they decided to keep him on as chief executive at Bain
so that he could benefit from the company’s health coverage. It was decided that he
would
take a leave of absence from his duties at Bain to do something less demanding, and so
he signed on to run the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.
When his duties at the Olympics were complete, Mr. Romney submitted to a full
physical at the request of his partners to Bain to see if he was finally ready to make his
much-delayed exit from the firm. He passed most of the cognitive tests with flying colors;
he could remember the name of his wife and all of his sons, which in his case was an
impressive feat. Only one question made him stumble. When I asked him what year
it was, instead of 2002 he replied, “1999.”
To be candid, I did not think much of his error at the time, although I now see it as
a symptom of the chronic memory loss that persisted once he became Governor of
Massachusetts. For example, after examining Gov. Romney just after his greatest
legislative achievement, Massachusetts’ healthcare law, he had no memory of having
any role in it. In subsequent appointments, Mr. Romney has been unable to remember
other facts one might deem important, such as where he put all his money and what file
drawer contains his tax returns.
In closing, it is my medical opinion that Mr. Romney’s forgetfulness about when he
departed Bain, as well as his vagueness on any number of other subjects, stem from that
original head injury he suffered in 1999. Having said that, I do not believe that Mr. Romney’s
bouts of amnesia should in any way prevent him from having a full, active public life.
In running for the Presidency, they may even be an advantage.
Sincerely,
Dr. Hamilton Tennace, M.D.
