Clinton's Health Just Became a Huge Campaign Issue

She cancels California events after diagnosis of pneumonia
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 12, 2016 5:02 AM CDT
Updated Sep 12, 2016 5:44 AM CDT
Clinton's Health Is Now a Campaign Issue
Hillary Clinton waves after leaving an apartment building on Sunday.   (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Concerns about Hillary Clinton's health have gone from conspiracy theory to what analysts are calling a major campaign issue. After she abruptly left a 9/11 memorial event early Sunday, her doctor disclosed that she had been diagnosed with pneumonia on Friday and was advised to rest. The campaign now says that Clinton has canceled a Monday and Tuesday trip to California that would have involved several fundraising appearances as well as a major economic speech and an appearance on Ellen, the Washington Post reports. In other coverage:

  • Clinton's physician, Dr. Lisa R. Bardack, said Clinton was "overheated and dehydrated" at the 9/11 event but is now "rehydrated and recovering nicely," the New York Times reports. Bardack didn't say what kind of pneumonia Clinton has or whether she had a fever Sunday.

  • Politico reports that political journalists strongly criticized the campaign's handling of Clinton's illness, while Clinton allies downplayed the issue—and even praised her stamina. "'Powering through' illness is what women do: Stoically, every. single. day," tweeted former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm.
  • CNN spoke to a doctor about Clinton's stumble and the subsequent news of pneumonia. Ford Vox says neither is at all unusual in somebody Clinton's age, though there's certainly a chance of other underlying health issues.
  • The Los Angeles Times reports that the incident has renewed calls for the release of detailed health records from Clinton, who is 68, and her 70-year-old rival. "This is the kind of thing that voters have a right to understand before they cast a vote," says GOP strategist Katie Packer, who doesn't support either candidate. "Both Trump and Hillary are elderly. They are obligated to release full medical records and full tax returns to the American people. And the media, party leaders, and American people should settle for nothing less."
  • The Washington Post looks at the "intense privacy" that has long surrounded Clinton's health after incidents like a 1998 blood clot in her leg that she later described as her "scariest moment."
  • The Telegraph looks at what might happen if health issues force Clinton to quit the race.
  • Politico reports that some Trump supporters gleefully celebrated her illness on social media, though Trump himself has declined to comment. A lobbyist who raises money for Trump says he hopes the candidate will be able to remain "very careful and sensitive, and not reinforce the worse things people think about him."
(More Hillary Clinton stories.)

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