Rich Lowry

The ramp would collapse, and it would be normal stairs when the visitor came.

And they'd roll him behind a desk, get him into a chair, and he'd play around with the stamp collection.

And this was so painful for him.

He could only do it for like 20 minutes or so.

And the person would come in and have no idea there was anything wrong with him.

He was such a bubbly personality that he would just talk the whole time and no one would think, oh, he's not walking around the room or he's not really moving.

And after 20 minutes, the person would be ushered out, the steps would go up, the ramp would come.

And that was artifice, but also extremely courageous.

He'd give speeches standing, you know, with his arms almost giving out because he was so obsessed with not seeming like a victim.

And a more recent example of this,

MBD mentioned John McCain.

I was covering him, I don't know, I think it was in 2000.

And I was on the press bus with McCain, early stages of campaign where you're really intimate with the candidate.

And all the reporters have left, and I left my notebook or something or tape recorder.

So I went back after all the reporters were supposed to have left this van, and he was sitting in the back with an aide combing his hair.

And I asked someone, why is an aide combing his hair?

He can't lift his arms above here.

But he didn't want people to know.

He didn't want to advertise that because he was not a victim.

Right.