Insightful piece , Chris. My personal view is that there are fictions one tells themselves for comfort or ego protection. In my opinion, the notion of a happy afterlife is one of these fictions. How many people can rationally believe that one re-unites with loved ones after death? But people cling to that notion because it brings comfort. Others adhere to personal fictions that comfort a frail ego. We know that Trump is a malignant narcissist from his behavior and self-centered speech patterns. That is a sure sign of a fragile ego. Being a "billionaire," being a scratch golfer,"being the winner of the election are lies that are central to his being. So in my view, it's not an either/or situation. He knows how to lie strategically. But there are other lies so central to his sense of self that he must integrate them as truth. But regardless of what Trump truly believes, his constant flood of lies is a toxic force in our body politic, and his "Big Lie" tactics have become widely employed.
He's a carny through and through like any true pro wrestling promoter. I know you've talked a lot about the parallels between Vince McMahon and Donald Trump.
It reminds me of Hulk Hogan who every interview just spews endless BS to the point I think he believes the reality he's concocted in his head.
Until Hogan has to testify that Terry Bollea and the character Hulk Hogan are too different people, lol. But yeah, the similarities between Vince and Trump are scary. Sigh
I believe he said he was talking about there was a difference between the penis size of Hulk Hogan and Terry Bollea.
He also was a bassist for Metallica, partied with John Belushi at Wrestlemania 2, acts like Andre the Giant died right after Wrestlemania 3, just missed out on the George Foreman Grill, invented theme music, etc etc etc
You are insulting carnys everywhere equating Trump with them. And I've personally dealt with carnys at multiple church festivals. Sometimes it was hard to discern who was acting more "carny like" the carny or the parish priest during negotiations and end of event settlement.
Trump’s testimony, while it may have yielded some prosecutorial gold, was an abomination. That he was allowed to defile our court with his abhorrent behavior defines a new low for American jurisprudence. He should be in a cell right now, having been held in contempt of court. He displayed contempt not just of court, but of country.
Yes, but that “prosecutorial gold” is EVERYTHING! Trump will lie as easily as he breathes: we all know that. But to put him on the stand and let him incriminate himself is absolute perfection!
“Defile our courts”? Frankly, people perjure themselves on the stand regularly across all courts in the US, but what they say can and will be used against them. If I were one of his lawyers (sorry, I just threw up in my mouth a little bit after saying that...), I would keep him as FAR away from the witness stand as I could!
I agree that it may have been worth the brain damage of Trump’s immature outbursts to get some dirt, but I am deeply offended that he was allowed to behave that way. Perjury is one thing, and yes, folks do it all the time, but this was a different sort of thing altogether. His attorneys may try to keep him off the stand in his criminal cases, but my bet is that Trump sees this performance as a win, and will want to testify in his other cases. Trump is a disgrace to the office of the Presidency and to the United States.
... and, he's even wrong about the disclaimer, that's by and for the accountants, so that they're not on the hook for the information they were given by Trump ...
Not to give advice to the stablest of genuises but I think what would add one more very to the powerfulness of the disclaimer would be the admonition, “Donald Trump is a lying sack of crap.”
I offer that to him gratis, since he wouldn’t pay anyway.
Trump is a NYC gutter rat through and through. He is sick and twisted, between his father and Roy Cohn, they have created what we see here. I honestly can’t fathom anyone actually believing whatever comes out of his mouth. He is deranged and knows enough to push the limits beyond reproach. Anyone else would be in prison for what he has done through the years, he has been teflon Don so far. Hopefully, these indictments will be able to bring him down, I have my doubts. This deranged orange man, should have been stopped in 2015, here we are in 2023 with a possibility of him winning the White House once again. Disgraceful.
This is a good take and something I have gone back and forth on myself. Ultimately, I agree that Trump knows that he is lying and his anti-democratic actions are calculated. He is putting the US on a path to authoritarianism purely to satisfy his own ego and his voters are serving as the "rubes" to borrow Chris' term.
The shame about this entire situation is that Trump continues to get the press coverage and attention that he craves and needs to stay in the forefront of gullible voters. I truly wish that we could stop reporting on polls saying he is ahead of Biden. It just so non-productive. If we could keep the focus on what Biden is achieving and only report on Trump IF and when, he actually is the nominee. AND comes up with a proper fiscal plan. Right now all this coverage of trump, even if it is critical of him, is just feeding into the hysteria of the Maga cult.
"If he doesn’t, then the frontrunner to be the Republican nominee for president in 2024 is a dangerous huckster whose has honed his pitch to unwitting voters over a lifetime of practiced deceit."
Chris - he has always been in on the joke. He is very aware of his lies, and has told others he thinks less of those who believe him. At his core, Trump is nothing more than a snake oil seller at a carnival.
As human beings, we want to find some redeeming and logical explanation, like he has deluded himself and actually believes his s**t doesn’t stink, because as human beings, we find it difficult to think someone could be so devious and cruel - we are only fooling ourselves.
Trump is absolutely this devious and cruel - and he has gotten away with it for 78 years, so why stop now?
I have ALWAYS believed Trump is just a big-ass bullshitter and he knows what he’s saying is bullshit. And to the discredit of many, they totally believe it. Which makes those believers just straight up cultists.
If anyone here is interested, a while back I produced a comparative history piece looking at the way Trump's actions mirror dictators of the past. Further proof of the intentionality and danger of his actions.
Chris, I believe Trump is an expert class, black diamond liar. A master at real time formulation of words to process, on the fly just the right B.S. to gaslight, project and ingratiate. His brain is wired so that the neurons always align to self centeredness and narcissism. No ability to empathize yet an amazing capability to protect himself. He’s “smart” in way that compassionate people can’t process. I know because I used to behave like this. It was a long journey for me to change, but I did.
Solid reasoning. It got me thinking about Trump’s voters. Do they really believe his lies or are they just going along with him because at this point it’s too hard to admit they were wrong to support him in the first place? I’d love to see a study using galvanic skin responses to find the answer.
Insightful piece , Chris. My personal view is that there are fictions one tells themselves for comfort or ego protection. In my opinion, the notion of a happy afterlife is one of these fictions. How many people can rationally believe that one re-unites with loved ones after death? But people cling to that notion because it brings comfort. Others adhere to personal fictions that comfort a frail ego. We know that Trump is a malignant narcissist from his behavior and self-centered speech patterns. That is a sure sign of a fragile ego. Being a "billionaire," being a scratch golfer,"being the winner of the election are lies that are central to his being. So in my view, it's not an either/or situation. He knows how to lie strategically. But there are other lies so central to his sense of self that he must integrate them as truth. But regardless of what Trump truly believes, his constant flood of lies is a toxic force in our body politic, and his "Big Lie" tactics have become widely employed.
He's a carny through and through like any true pro wrestling promoter. I know you've talked a lot about the parallels between Vince McMahon and Donald Trump.
It reminds me of Hulk Hogan who every interview just spews endless BS to the point I think he believes the reality he's concocted in his head.
Until Hogan has to testify that Terry Bollea and the character Hulk Hogan are too different people, lol. But yeah, the similarities between Vince and Trump are scary. Sigh
I believe he said he was talking about there was a difference between the penis size of Hulk Hogan and Terry Bollea.
He also was a bassist for Metallica, partied with John Belushi at Wrestlemania 2, acts like Andre the Giant died right after Wrestlemania 3, just missed out on the George Foreman Grill, invented theme music, etc etc etc
You are insulting carnys everywhere equating Trump with them. And I've personally dealt with carnys at multiple church festivals. Sometimes it was hard to discern who was acting more "carny like" the carny or the parish priest during negotiations and end of event settlement.
Trump’s testimony, while it may have yielded some prosecutorial gold, was an abomination. That he was allowed to defile our court with his abhorrent behavior defines a new low for American jurisprudence. He should be in a cell right now, having been held in contempt of court. He displayed contempt not just of court, but of country.
Yes, but that “prosecutorial gold” is EVERYTHING! Trump will lie as easily as he breathes: we all know that. But to put him on the stand and let him incriminate himself is absolute perfection!
“Defile our courts”? Frankly, people perjure themselves on the stand regularly across all courts in the US, but what they say can and will be used against them. If I were one of his lawyers (sorry, I just threw up in my mouth a little bit after saying that...), I would keep him as FAR away from the witness stand as I could!
I agree that it may have been worth the brain damage of Trump’s immature outbursts to get some dirt, but I am deeply offended that he was allowed to behave that way. Perjury is one thing, and yes, folks do it all the time, but this was a different sort of thing altogether. His attorneys may try to keep him off the stand in his criminal cases, but my bet is that Trump sees this performance as a win, and will want to testify in his other cases. Trump is a disgrace to the office of the Presidency and to the United States.
He could pee on their heads and tell them that it’s raining, and they would believe him.
... and, he's even wrong about the disclaimer, that's by and for the accountants, so that they're not on the hook for the information they were given by Trump ...
Not to give advice to the stablest of genuises but I think what would add one more very to the powerfulness of the disclaimer would be the admonition, “Donald Trump is a lying sack of crap.”
I offer that to him gratis, since he wouldn’t pay anyway.
Trump is a NYC gutter rat through and through. He is sick and twisted, between his father and Roy Cohn, they have created what we see here. I honestly can’t fathom anyone actually believing whatever comes out of his mouth. He is deranged and knows enough to push the limits beyond reproach. Anyone else would be in prison for what he has done through the years, he has been teflon Don so far. Hopefully, these indictments will be able to bring him down, I have my doubts. This deranged orange man, should have been stopped in 2015, here we are in 2023 with a possibility of him winning the White House once again. Disgraceful.
This is a good take and something I have gone back and forth on myself. Ultimately, I agree that Trump knows that he is lying and his anti-democratic actions are calculated. He is putting the US on a path to authoritarianism purely to satisfy his own ego and his voters are serving as the "rubes" to borrow Chris' term.
They're not "serving as," they ARE rubes.
So it would seem, sadly.
The shame about this entire situation is that Trump continues to get the press coverage and attention that he craves and needs to stay in the forefront of gullible voters. I truly wish that we could stop reporting on polls saying he is ahead of Biden. It just so non-productive. If we could keep the focus on what Biden is achieving and only report on Trump IF and when, he actually is the nominee. AND comes up with a proper fiscal plan. Right now all this coverage of trump, even if it is critical of him, is just feeding into the hysteria of the Maga cult.
I vote this:
"If he doesn’t, then the frontrunner to be the Republican nominee for president in 2024 is a dangerous huckster whose has honed his pitch to unwitting voters over a lifetime of practiced deceit."
Chris - he has always been in on the joke. He is very aware of his lies, and has told others he thinks less of those who believe him. At his core, Trump is nothing more than a snake oil seller at a carnival.
As human beings, we want to find some redeeming and logical explanation, like he has deluded himself and actually believes his s**t doesn’t stink, because as human beings, we find it difficult to think someone could be so devious and cruel - we are only fooling ourselves.
Trump is absolutely this devious and cruel - and he has gotten away with it for 78 years, so why stop now?
I have ALWAYS believed Trump is just a big-ass bullshitter and he knows what he’s saying is bullshit. And to the discredit of many, they totally believe it. Which makes those believers just straight up cultists.
If anyone here is interested, a while back I produced a comparative history piece looking at the way Trump's actions mirror dictators of the past. Further proof of the intentionality and danger of his actions.
Trump and the Dictator's Playbook: https://democracyssisyphus.substack.com/p/trump-and-the-dictators-playbook
And they never will be. Way too far down the rabbit hole to ever see the light.
Chris, I believe Trump is an expert class, black diamond liar. A master at real time formulation of words to process, on the fly just the right B.S. to gaslight, project and ingratiate. His brain is wired so that the neurons always align to self centeredness and narcissism. No ability to empathize yet an amazing capability to protect himself. He’s “smart” in way that compassionate people can’t process. I know because I used to behave like this. It was a long journey for me to change, but I did.
Solid reasoning. It got me thinking about Trump’s voters. Do they really believe his lies or are they just going along with him because at this point it’s too hard to admit they were wrong to support him in the first place? I’d love to see a study using galvanic skin responses to find the answer.