Trump’s post election behavior is abominable and embarrassing for all of us. We’ve never seen anything like this from an American president before. At first, I blamed this behavior on never being held accountable and always being bailed out by his father and later by bankers who bought into his created “successful businessman” narrative. People whose failures are constantly bailed out by their parents fail to mature, continue bad behavior and struggle with marriage and relationships according to Kevin A. Thompson (Parenting Adult Children Who Make Bad Choices 07/02/2013 kevinathompson.com). Trump’s stern father and the neglect he suffered as a toddler when his mother had a lengthy illness (see Mary Trump’s book) also contributed to his current day behavior. But, this is all on top of, most likely, having untreated inherited Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD).
People with NSD usually have a vision, a desire to be admired and to want to build empires, but they are UNABLE to listen, accept criticism, be consistent, maintain healthy relationships and experience empathy. They can’t love. They only love what the other person can do for them. And, they often can’t accept loss or failure.
Evita March writes in A Personality Psychologist Explains Why Some People Can’t Admit When They Lose – And How They Spin Failure to Blame Others (www.businessinsider.com 11/12/2020) that people with ‘grandiose narcissism’ “…may be unable to accept, or even comprehend, that they have not won.” They suffer from cognitive dissonance when their internal “belief” does not match up with actual reality. Experiencing cognitive dissonance feels uncomfortable and can even threaten the very core of one’s sense of self. March writes that “…strategies we use to reduce dissonance can also make us unyielding in our belief. Ongoing acceptance of our beliefs could make us unable to accept outcomes even in the face of damning evidence.” This suggests that TRUMP DOES NOT BELIEVE THAT HE LOST; IN HIS MIND, IT HAS TO BE A MISTAKE, SOMEBODY HAD TO HAVE CHEATED, FOR HIM THERE IS NO OTHER EXPLANATION!
Having an NSD inspired personal narrative combined with the power that comes from having nearly a half billion dollars provided by your father can take one far, far beyond their “actual” abilities and way outside reality. The ascendancy to the presidency has laid bare the false reality in which Trump seems to live and has revealed incompetence, immorality and corruption. His refusal to accept the outcome of our fair and free election and to desperately make 60 or more baseless legal claims of voter fraud and to call for multiple recounts that did not change the numbers, finally brought full attention to his, what seems to be, pronounced debilitating personality disorder. He seems so disturbed right now that he can’t even carry out the basic duties of the presidency. We’re in the middle of the worst disaster since the Civil War and all he can do is play golf.
Narcissists can change, but they have to want to and they have to be aware that they need to. It seems that Trump has never engaged in any self-examination or reflection during his entire 74 years on earth. Has there ever been a previous president this seemingly disturbed or this far removed from reality? Sadly, Trump has demonstrated behaviors commensurate to a severe personality disorder and is playing them out on a world stage. How insane is it that he involved the Supreme Court of the United States and actually threatened the foundations of our democracy with his unacceptable behavior and what seems to be a break from reality?
This is a nightmare. We have a president seemingly detached from reality, but still got 74,000,000 votes and has nearly the entire Republican Party afraid of a Trump tweet. Trump’s false “super successful super smart businessman” narrative is constantly repeated and supported on right wing media while they portray him as a victim of the evil left and the fake mainstream media when any negative truths are revealed. But, insider Secretary of State (for one year anyway) Rex Tillerson told us that Trump is a “f…ing moron.” Trump does not seem to care about America or Americans or doing the everyday duties of the president, he seems to only care about the attention and the power and the personal wealth he can draw from the position. He’s been a destructive disaster to our democracy, to our government and to our standing in the world. He is maybe the most dangerous and deadly force faced by America, especially in light of his failed response to the pandemic.
Regrettably for us, the DMSV defines Narcissistic Personality Disorder as a MENTAL ILLNESS. Not accepting the reality of the election loss is a clear sign of delusion. He did nothing new to broaden his base of supporters and that cost him the election, not any voter fraud. He lost the popular vote twice, by 2.8 million in 2016 and by a whopping 7 million in 2020. He lost because he didn’t do the work needed to win. It seems his false grandiose sense of self made him believe he didn’t need to do anything new to win. HE LOST THE VOTE ON HIS OWN! And now we are subjected to the unacceptable and dangerous behavior of a seemingly mentally ill loser who is protected by the office of the presidency and his enablers that refuse to hold him accountable or to remove him via the 25th Amendment.
Hopefully, we can begin to heal on January 20 and return to sanity. Maybe the Republican Party can review and renew their values and ideology. Maybe they can lead from the top down instead of letting a few aggrieved right wing talk show hosts, solely motivated by money and fame, turn Republican supporters into a bunch of populist conspiracy theorists white nationalists lie believing truth deniers. Republican leadership needs to step up because our democracy is in danger of failing. They’ve become the anti-government party! But, we ARE the government. Our government is our face to the world. We need to believe in our government in order to succeed in the world. The Republicans need to leave behind their “unfit” leader and start anew with a healthy and capable candidate for 2024. America can only be great if we work together!
reilly m gray 