When President Trump was rushed to The Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda on Saturday, November 19th, 2019, Vice President Mike Pence was reportedly told to be “on standby” to take over the duties of the president in case Trump had to be put under general anesthesia, a new book by New York Times reporter Michael S. Schmidt details, per the Rachel Maddow Show.

The White House has maintained that Trump was simply going for part of his annual physical; however, Trump didn’t officially finish the physical until at least February of the following year.  On the day of the rushed visit to Bethesda, Trump was seen being led to a Secret Service SUV–not “The Beast” presidential limousine–and had the White House physician take a seat next to him.  Trump was not wearing a tie, and his collar was open.

Two months later, on a Saturday afternoon in mid-November, as Democrats moved toward their impeachment vote, Trump made an unexpected visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.  The White House played off the trip as part of the president’s annual physical but provided no other details about the examination, raising questions about the president’s health.

In reporting for this book, I learned that in the hours leading up to Trump’s trip to the hospital, word went out in the West Wing for the vice president to be on standby to take over the powers of the presidency temporarily if Trump had to undergo a procedure that would have required him to be anesthetized.

The White House has a robust medical suite on the premises that would be able to treat the President for any health issue short of a surgical procedure that requires general anesthesia.

Schmidt’s book, Donald Trump v. The United States, will go on sale tomorrow.