# Does Trump believe the things he says? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [December 21, 2025, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926 "2025-12-21T21:08:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2025, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/21 "2025-12-21T23:03:50Z")
To Trump, reality is whatever he wants it to be. Thanks a lot, Norman Vincent Peale. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/22 "2025-12-22T00:50:28Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Donald Trump says many things which are not true. > > Do you think he knows this? Does he know he’s lying but figures his audience will believe his lies? Or does he believe the things he says are true? He reminds me very much of Mark Hoffman, the Salt Lake City bomber. The veracity of a statement is not based on facts for him, but what other people believe about the statement. It’s an odd manifestation of _It’s true because I want it to be true_. And since other people have told him what he’s said is true, he now believes it because, after all, it’s true. How’s that for circular logic? > [@](#): > > Do you think this has changed over the years? Did Trump know he was lying back in 2016 but he’s since lost it? He hasn’t changed a whit. > [@](#): > > I guess the question is whether Trump is as dumb as the average Trump supporter. Yes. If anything, it’s only a difference in kind not degree; it’s still within the set of stupidity. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/23 "2025-12-22T04:09:47Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Do you think he knows this? Does he know he’s lying but figures his audience will believe his lies? Or does he believe the things he says are true? Trump wouldn’t go through so much effort to hide the truth if he didn’t know he was lying. > [@Stratocaster](#): > > I think he believes that the truth is what he wants it to be, that he can bully the universe into being what he prefers. Not in all things—there are corners of his mind where he knows certain truths can’t be ignored, and when he occasionally considers such things, he can panic. I certainly believe this is true of a good many Trump supporters. No matter what Trump says, his audience hears what they want to hear. Whatever Trump says means whatever the listener wants it to mean. He’s like the tarot or fortune cookie of presidents. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/24 "2025-12-22T05:11:37Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > > > Do you think he knows this? Does he know he’s lying but figures his audience will believe his lies? Or does he believe the things he says are true? > > Trump wouldn’t go through so much effort to hide the truth if he didn’t know he was lying. Does he though really? Many of his lies are blatant and obvious. It seems to me that mostly he relies on his preferred audience being particularly ignorant or willing to believe. He is not careful about hiding the truth from those who care about the truth. It seems to me what determines whether he will go through an effort to hide something depends on whether it will embarrass him. It being (or not being) a lie is not determinative or significantly relevant. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/25 "2025-12-22T07:02:15Z")
As others have said here, I don’t believe Trump really thinks in terms of lying or telling the truth. When he says he’s going to create 11 billion jobs, he’s not thinking about the fact that he can’t really do that, or that he has no real plan for making something like that happen. He’s thinking in terms of what will play well for his audience, of what will help him advance. It’s like how an actor on stage pretending to be someone else isn’t really thinking of themselves as lying. They have a job to do, which is to entertain a crowd and elicit a reaction. That’s how Trump approaches what he does. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/26 "2025-12-22T14:02:55Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > It’s like how an actor on stage pretending to be someone else isn’t really thinking of themselves as lying. They have a job to do, which is to entertain a crowd and elicit a reaction. So true! It’s interesting this isn’t pointed out more often (for real) – it should be. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/27 "2025-12-22T14:20:15Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > Does he though really? Many of his lies are blatant and obvious. It seems to me that mostly he relies on his preferred audience being particularly ignorant or willing to believe. He is not careful about hiding the truth from those who care about the truth. He went through a lot of effort to hide the fact that he stole classified documents, to keep his tax returns hidden from the public, claimed he knew nothing about Project 2025, and most recently did his best to keep the Epstein Files under wraps. Trump has spent decades of his life hiding the truth from others. Are his lies blatant and obvious? Yes. Does he rely on an audience ignoring his lies for one reason or another? Yes. Trump still does his best to hide the truth. > [@Princhester](#): > > It seems to me what determines whether he will go through an effort to hide something depends on whether it will embarrass him. It being (or not being) a lie is not determinative or significantly relevant. I would agree. And that’s evidence to me that he understands the difference between the truth and lies. He knows he lies. When he stood before the world, telling us he didn’t know E Jean Carrol that he was lying. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/28 "2025-12-22T14:56:37Z")
When it comes to numbers, I don’t think it’s a matter of “Does he believe that this particular number is true?”, I think it’s a matter of “He believes that the numbers are whatever he says they are.” We’ve seen this on display in he pre-presidential life. He arbitrarily puts numbers on things like his personal net worth, the value of his “Branding”, and the values of his properties, based entirely on what he needs the numbers to be that day. When Forbes is trying to compile their list of the richest people, everything Trump owns gets inflated in value, so he can bump himself up a few places on that list. But when the taxmen come around, suddenly everything he owns is worth a fraction of what he told Forbes. He’s trained himself to _fundamentally not care about_ what the real numbers are, and that carries over into his politics now. He really doesn’t care how much drug prices will come down, but saying 600% makes him feel good, and gets applause, so that’s the number he uses. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/29 "2025-12-22T15:05:38Z")
My new goal when I win the $1.6 billion lottery: finance a Time Machine project, then go back to 1956 and get the America-hating fuckstick obsessed with becoming a star on Broadway. Maybe groom him into a transwoman while I’m at it. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/30 "2025-12-22T15:29:18Z")
Of all the lies and patently untrue things he says, I put them into two main classes. There are the politically motivated lies. These lies have a purpose to them. trump may know he’s lying when he says these types of lies, or he may once have known but at this point does not even care, or distinguish between lies and the truth anymore. As has been said, he says whatever is convenient in the moment. But these are the things he says that he may not believe. Then there are the ridiculous howlers that I can see no real purpose in him saying, other than that he must believe them. Otherwise why say these clearly wrong, stupid-sounding things that do not advance his political agenda (any way that I can see, at least)? Just a few of the many, many things he’s said lately that fall into the second category: - Snakes in Peru kill 28,000 people a year (there were 10 deaths from snake bite in a 15 year period). - Stealth planes are invisible until the bomb bay doors open-- he’s seen it! - Spilling water onto magnets causes them to melt. - He’s taken several cognitive tests, which prove he’s a genius, and nobody else would score as well as him if they took the test. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/31 "2025-12-22T15:38:41Z")
With people who tell outlandish whoppers on a consistent basis, you always wonder how much of what’s put out there they actually believe. Candace Owens, Naomi Wolf, Alex Jones, Bret Weinstein, Mike Adams (of Natural News infamy) and many other influencers/politicians/social media personalities have learned that spewing outrageous crap gets them attention and money. How much of what they spew they actually believe is open to question. Breaking down percentages into mental disturbance vs. craftiness is very difficult and ultimately pointless. For what it’s worth, it seems as if Trump’s shift from political calculation into unhinged ravings is gathering speed. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/32 "2025-12-22T15:56:50Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > It’s like how an actor on stage pretending to be someone else isn’t really thinking of themselves as lying. They have a job to do, which is to entertain a crowd and elicit a reaction. That’s how Trump approaches what he does. Yes, or like a stand-up comedian telling stories about what supposedly happened to them. Those stories may be true, they may be embellished, they may be totally made up, but it doesn’t really matter as long as they’re funny and get a good reaction from the audience. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/33 "2025-12-22T15:57:20Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > “Low cunning” is the term I’d use. I was just thinking the same thing. Basically exactly how Tywin Lannister describes his son Tyrion in GOT (I don’t know if the term pre-dates his usage on the show). Trump is a businessman and it is a trait I’ve seen pretty consistently in my 25+ years in the business world. It’s not “lying” per se. It’s just a mutual understanding that everything we they saying and doing is mostly bullshit but no one really cares. ---
**Author:** ![Heracles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heracles/32/487_2.png) [@Heracles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heracles)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/34 "2025-12-22T15:59:14Z")
Let’s see what happened with the ad by the government of Ontario that quoted Reagan. Initially, Trump was quoted as saying “Heh, I would have done the same thing in their shoes”. 2-3 days later, he denounced this highly dishonest ad, even getting the Reagan library to agree that the quotes were fake, and declared he was suspending trade negotiations with Canada. Which was convenient because MAGA’s policy is to depict Canada as dishonest and crafty, and they wanted to put more pressure on Canada in the NAFTA 2 renegotiation in 2026. Now obviously he doesn’t mind lying if it riles up his base and attains the MAGA objectives. But where did he get the idea for this U-turn? Was it him? Steven Miller? Grok AI? Who contacted the Reagan library to get the statement? Trump himself probably doesn’t know how to find a phone number. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/35 "2025-12-22T16:46:57Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Trump is a businessman And I’m the Wizard of Oz. Thanks for the laugh. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/36 "2025-12-22T17:43:18Z")
Trump is what you get when someone keeps faking it even though they had already made it as soon as the ink dried on their birth certificate. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/37 "2025-12-22T17:51:03Z")
Trump is so ineffably stupid that I don’t think the question is meaningful. He doesn’t really understand the concept of “truth” so just says whatever comes into his head that he thinks the rubes will like, or whatever someone has told him that he thinks will be politically advantageous, like Haitian immigrants eating the neighbours’ cats and dogs. In many cases he couldn’t tell you himself whether he “believes” it or not. “Truth” vs “lie” is not an operational concept in his tiny brain. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/38 "2025-12-22T18:38:30Z")
He’s an ignoramus who either doesn’t listen to what his people tell him, or they’ve given up trying to tell him anything. The marks on Garcia’s hands, thinking George Floyd riot footage is current events, magnets v. water, how percentages work, ETC. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/39 "2025-12-22T19:19:09Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > He’s an ignoramus who either doesn’t listen to what his people tell him The problem is that he appointed a bunch of racist bigots. He listens to them. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2025, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926/40 "2025-12-22T19:42:29Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > The problem is that he appointed a bunch of racist bigots. Many of them are, no doubt. But that’s not really the point. The main point unifying all of them is that they’re all incompetents grossly unqualified for their positions and their only virtue for Trump is that they’re loyal sycophants who, because of their own vulnerabilities, are totally invested in defending him. But certainly, reprehensible creatures like Tom Homan and the neo-Nazi Steven Miller are raging racists. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-believe-the-things-he-says/1025926.md?page=3)