Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), 40, said his 78-year-old running mate, Donald Trump, is “healthier than I am” amid intense scrutiny of the former president’s cognitive state and his refusal to release his medical records.

“I think the presidency is such a big job. I feel extremely confident — I mean, hell, Donald Trump is healthier than I am. I feel extremely confident that Donald Trump is going to serve and serve well for four years for the American people and I’m going to help him,” the Republican told a rally crowd in Nevada on Wednesday.

Trump has rebuffed calls to share his medical history after Vice President Kamala Harris released hers earlier this month. Hundreds of health professionals have called on the Republican nominee to disclose the information, citing concerns about his acuity and fitness to serve based on his erratic behavior on the campaign trail.

“It is very telling how defensive they are,” Harris campaign director of rapid response Ammar Moussa said of Vance’s praise on X, formerly Twitter.

“Authoritarian personality cult alert. We must praise the leader’s vitality, especially if he has been falling asleep in public!” wrote Ruth Ben-Ghiat, an authoritarianism expert.

In reports published earlier this week, Trump’s former chief of staff, John Kelly, said he believes Trump to have the characteristics of a fascist and warned he would rule like one. He also confirmed previous reporting that Trump had praised Adolf Hitler in his presence.

Some critics honed in on the “dear leader” element of Vance’s compliment. Others questioned the Trump campaign’s reticence to be more transparent if Trump purportedly is as healthy as someone nearly half his age.

See a snapshot of the reactions below.