# THIS is the real, true, massive problem with Trump **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [November 5, 2025, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592 "2025-11-05T05:39:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/1 "2025-11-05T05:39:16Z")
I tried to get former MAGAts talking in my earlier thread but it’s not happening… But it did bring me around to my overriding issue that I think should be _everybody’s_ overriding issue that sweeps everything else off the table to the floor where it doesn’t fucking matter… Because it isn’t the list — the misogyny, the assaults, the cruelty, the corruption, the selfishness. That’s all real, but that’s not the core of it. The core is this: he is genuinely, profoundly not well. He does not think, feel or behave anything like a normal, functional adult human being. And people keep acting like this is just “his style” or “his personality quirk.” It is not. This is not eccentricity. Eccentric is wearing mismatched socks and collecting marbles. This is a total inability to recognize others as real or meaningful. Forget politics. He certainly does. He has no ideology, no beliefs, no values — only himself. His entire inner world is me me me me me, on loop, every minute. There is no “we.” There is no shared reality. And here is the part that everyone keeps glossing over: What we are seeing is wildly abnormal. Not flawed. Not weird. Wildly abnormal. This is not a “difference of opinion.” This is a person with no empathy, no emotional maturity, no self-awareness, and no capacity for genuine human connection. He reacts to the world with the emotional range of a panicked, enraged child — one who will burn down anything he can’t control. That should not be framed as “interesting,” “unconventional,” or “refreshingly honest.” It should be frightening. Because when someone like that holds power, the damage spreads — not from strategy, but from pure instinctive need. A need that never ends. If he were just some guy on the street, I would genuinely feel sorry for him. Because he seems to have no concept of what it is to be human — to love, to care, to connect. He is missing those pieces entirely. And that’s why treating this like a normal political preference — “left versus right,” “agree or disagree” — is surreal. This is about whether the individual with power over millions of lives, indeed billions of lives, _the entire planet_, is a functional human being in the most basic psychological sense. He is not whole. He is not well. He is wildly abnormal. Calling it “personality” is denial. Calling it “eccentricity” is cowardice. This is not a political choice. It is a reality test. You are completely disconnected from reality if you can find one or a dozen reasons to choose him to lead a choir practice, much less the most powerful nation on earth. And it is that which leaves me completely aghast that _ **anyone** _ supports him. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/3 "2025-11-05T05:43:56Z")
It’s 1 million problems all springing from one: he’s broken. His psyche is smashed up like it got run over by a truck ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/4 "2025-11-05T06:12:07Z")
Maybe you should read Mary Trumps book on Donald. It is his niece. She is a clinical psychologist who has laid it all out. I personally think he’s narcissistic. He couldn’t be otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/5 "2025-11-05T06:13:51Z")
I did. And he is the most extreme narcissist I can imagine actually existing. He’s the pinnacle of what narcissism can be. ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/6 "2025-11-05T06:24:09Z")
Not just a narcissist, a malignant one: > **[More than 200 health professionals say Trump has ‘malignant narcissism’ in...](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/24/trump-nyt-ad-george-conway-pac)** > > George Conway-led Pac questions Republican nominee’s mental fitness for office in full-page New York Times ad > **[Malignant Narcissism: Does the President Really Have It?](https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/5-types-people-who-can-ruin-your-life/201903/malignant-narcissism-does-the-president-really)** > > There has been a lot of discussion about the president's behavior and mental state. Does he have malignant narcissism? And does it matter? (The counter-argument in the second article against this idea is that Trump doesn’t show the “distress” that typically comes with this disorder. But I feel like Trump exists in a constant state of distress.) ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/7 "2025-11-05T07:00:04Z")
I dispute the premise of question. The problem with 45/47 is that his approval today has “slumped” to only 37%. As comparison Keir Starmer’s approval is now 19%, down from nearly 70% when elected a year ago. Without him threatening to invade Ireland or defund the NHS. So it’s axiomatic, despite the howls of indignation from progressives, that a viable electoral block of American remain blissfully sanguine about current affairs. _“Roll on a 3rd term”_. Despite damming the swamp rather than draining it: _“Well what can you do?”_ Despite the economic unorthodoxy of the Keystone Cops: _“Surely the tariffs paid by China will be sufficient to bail out the losses incurred by our farmers and industries?”_ Despite gross moral turpitude, monumental grift and corruption: _“How can I get a piece of that action?”_ Despite loss of American international status: _“America first and only. USA, USA!, USA!”_ The problem is not 45/47, it’s why the people who put him there thought, and continue to think, it’s a good idea. The progressives managed to piss them off that much? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/8 "2025-11-05T09:43:45Z")
The problem is not Trump. He just IS. The problem is (D) leadership who cling to power like a Soviet oligarch. Except they are older than any Soviet apparatchik ever got to be. They think there are enough voter on their side who will vote for (D) all while running candidates that would be thrown out our Reagans GOP for being too deep in corporations’ pockets. In the US today you have a choice between a side that is in the pocket of Wall street and the other side that’s owned by a bunch of billionaires. The voters the (D) side needs to win see that very clearly and will not vote for someone they believe will not make a difference. Nothing to do with racism or misogyny: the voters Harris didn’t get just didn’t believe (very understandably, maybe even rightly) she wouldn’t have stood up for them. An important example: US liberals love to mock republicans for complaining about the price of eggs. Except during the Biden administration there WAS an huge egg-scandal: a bunch of egg producers made an ad hoc cartel and manipulated prices. This got out. Did they get serious punishments? Nope, a light slap on the wrist. Was this because some lobby group had the responsible officials bought and paid for? You decide. The image that prices went through the roof because Biden was a doddering, ineffective corporate puppet was not so devastating because it was made up by the MAGAs. Running his VP against this background was always a losing proposition. Do these voters now enthusiastically support Trump? Off course not, they just don’t think it matters for them who is ripping them off. To win the (D) side needs to convince a group of voters (10M or so) that will always vote (D), but will only come out if they believe the candidate is worth it. (Obama was, Hillary wasn’t, Trump convinced them to give Biden a chance, Biden convinced them Harris wasn’t worth their trouble) ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/9 "2025-11-05T11:04:00Z")
So he’s Making Abnormality Great Again? ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/10 "2025-11-05T12:49:20Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > He does not think, feel or behave anything like a normal, functional adult human being. The point of comparison is not with normal adult human beings, but with fellow elected strongmen and dictators. Compare him to Kim Jun Un, Rodrigo Duterte and Jair Bolsonaro. Sure they aren’t all the same. No two humans are. But they are all abnormal in roughly the same direction. There are some strongman leaders who are more calm in their speeches, like Xi Jinping. Javier Milei would get a higher grade in a MIT intro to economics final examination. But it isn’t unusual for dictators, whether fully consolidated or wannabe, to make over the top speeches. Is Trump crazy? I guess, although a lot is performative. Here is the perception problem: > **[Opinion | This Is the Way You Beat Trump — and Trumpism](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/opinion/democrats-liberalism-elections-crick.html?unlocked_article_code=1.yk8.7u7Z.IaZIM43WNRFd&smid=url-share)** > > Democrats do not just need to win more people. They also need to win more places. > [@](#): > > A Democratic strategist who has conducted countless focus groups told me that when he asks people to describe the two parties, they often describe Republicans as “crazy” and Democrats as “preachy.” One woman said to him, “I’ll take crazy over preachy. At least crazy doesn’t look down on me.” ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/11 "2025-11-05T12:51:05Z")
Yeah, choosing your ego over the future of humanity is perfectly normal and healthy. Disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/12 "2025-11-05T14:16:37Z")
Re last post: Healthy for humanity, no. But the mostly true phrase “absolute power corrupts absolutely” is worth considering. The [presidential form of government](https://democracyparadox.com/2022/06/29/perils-of-presidentialism/) invests a dangerous amount of power in one individual. The U.S. Constitution does try to limit this. For example, it deprives the president of the power to impose tariffs or to start a war. Unfortunately, Congress has passed laws giving away much of its power to the executive. The Supreme Court recklessly lets Congress do this without requiring the supermajorities needed for constitutional amendments. SCOTUS also refuses to enforce the Fourteenth Amendment Section 3 requirement that the president must respect his oath of office to be eligible for a second term. So, due to the other branches of government wussing out, we have an elected dictator with personality traits far from unknown when you give one person that much power. > [@The\_Librarian](#): > > Except during the Biden administration there WAS an huge egg-scandal: a bunch of egg producers made an ad hoc cartel and manipulated prices. This got out. Did they get serious punishments? Strong disagree. See: [PBS: A look at the real reasons behind soaring egg prices](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/a-look-at-the-real-reasons-behind-soaring-egg-prices) Democrats cannot out-do the Republicans on populism. I would not try. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/13 "2025-11-05T14:32:10Z")
> [@The\_Librarian](#): > > Off course not, they just don’t think it matters for them who is ripping them off. This is a key component. A huge part of the public takes it for a _given_ that The System will f&)# them over no matter who/what. And they **will** then vote for the alternative that at least gives them permission to rage, to know _someone_ will get kicked in the nuts about it, never mind if it doesn’t fix it or if that’s an innocent bystander or even themselves. “The future of humanity”? _ **At best** _ they believe that once we burn it all down then rebuild it right it will be worth the billions of casualties. Or Jesus will show up. Or they just figure that anyway they’re not going to be around for “the future” and it’s just to be more f&)#ing over generation after generation so what do they care, but gimme the satisfaction of NOT telling me I’m wrong for wanting what I want. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/14 "2025-11-05T14:45:32Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > Eccentric is wearing mismatched socks and collecting marbles. [![](https://i.redd.it/4ahv51v07pc91.jpg) ](https://i.redd.it/4ahv51v07pc91.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/15 "2025-11-05T15:17:44Z")
> [@The\_Librarian](#): > > … they just don’t think it matters for them who is ripping them off. _(my ellipsis)_ They’re wrong. All too often, it really DOES matter who’s ripping you off. You can lose more than some of your money, for one thing. A lesson learned in Louisiana 34 years ago, when **[beleaguered, scandal-ridden Edwin Edwards](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwin_Edwards#John_Volz_indictment_and_trials)** ran for a fourth term as Louisiana governor against white supremacist David Duke. > **[1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_Louisiana_gubernatorial_election)** > > Buddy Roemer > Republican > Edwin Edwards > Democratic > The 1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election resulted in the election of Democrat Edwin Edwards to his fourth non-consecutive term as governor of Louisiana. The election received national and international attention due to the unexpectedly strong showing of David Duke, a former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, who had ties to other white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups. Incumbent Republican Governor Buddy Roemer, who had switched... … A popular bumper sticker of the 1991 campaign. Today, we’d say this sentiment “went viral”: [![](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/theadvocate.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/1a/e1af33c3-7f00-512a-a2fa-ec78f7647c05/60ecb92f731a5.image.jpg) ](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/theadvocate.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/1a/e1af33c3-7f00-512a-a2fa-ec78f7647c05/60ecb92f731a5.image.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/16 "2025-11-05T15:17:46Z")
You misunderstand: I’m not talking about MAGAs. I really don’t believe there is a large group of people who voted for Obama that is now voting for Trump. I’m talking about the voters that (D) candidates need to win, ~10M voters that will happily stay at home if they don’t see enough difference, the people the (D)’s need to win will only vote for people who they think ISN’T going to rip them off. They will not vote for anyone (R), but the (D) candidate must convince them they are not just another Wall street puppet. So anyone backed by Pelosi and Schumer will LOSE. Thinking voters are stupid or are voting against their own interests is not going to win anyone any election. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/17 "2025-11-05T15:24:15Z")
> [@The\_Librarian](#): > > Thinking voters are stupid or are voting against their own interests is not going to win anyone any election. Trump being the obvious exception among many. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/18 "2025-11-05T15:43:32Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > The core is this: he is genuinely, profoundly not well. He in fact presents all the behaviors of what is known in psychology as: Malignant Narcissist. A malignant narcissist is a person who exhibits extreme traits of narcissism, combined with antisocial and sadistic behaviors. This term is not a recognized clinical diagnosis, but it is used by some psychologists and mental health professionals to describe a particularly severe form of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). Characteristics of Malignant Narcissists: - **Grandiose sense of self-importance:** They believe they are superior to others and entitled to special treatment. - **Lack of empathy:** They show little or no concern for the feelings or well-being of others. - **Manipulative and exploitative:** They use others to achieve their own goals, often without remorse. - **Aggressive and violent:** They may engage in physical, emotional, or sexual abuse. - **Paranoia and suspicion:** They believe that others are out to get them and may exhibit defensive or hostile behavior. - **Lack of remorse:** They do not feel guilty or ashamed for their actions ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/19 "2025-11-05T16:02:10Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > A malignant narcissist is a person who exhibits extreme traits of narcissism, combined with antisocial and sadistic behaviors. He’s also a moron. That may actually be good for everyone else. But people like Miller can just point him in any direction as long as he kisses his ring. The GOP figured this out long ago. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/20 "2025-11-05T16:05:02Z")
I’m not entirely convinced that he’s actually mentally ill, so much as he grew up in a wealthy bubble, and had some right asshole parents and mentors (Roy Cohn) who didn’t do much in the way of guiding him and instilling anything close to normal behaviors and outlooks. In other words, I’m fallling on the “nurture” side of nature vs. nurture for him. So we’ve basically got a spoiled rich kid who grew up into a spoiled adult, and who’s essentially never had to work for anything, never been told “no” in a meaningful way, and never had to suffer the consequences of any of his actions in any meaningful way. It’s made him venal, narcissistic, callous, and all the other bad stuff people point out. As for why people vote for him? There are a small handful of reasons which tend to reinforce each other. One, he’s got that “R” after his name. A huge chunk of the GOP voter base has been essentially groomed for decades that the Democrats are not only bumbling, but actively working to subvert the American way of life with various socialist and pro-immigrant/minority/LGBTQ/whatever policies _at the expense_ of everyone else. So they won’t ever vote Democrat. Two, the popular myth around Trump is that he’s fantastically rich. The first celebrity billionaire even. So in their minds, he obviously is wildly successful and powerful, and someone to be emulated and held up as something to be aspired to. Three, Trump’s blustery, never suffered any consequences, assholish style appeals to them. Not only does he say what many of them are thinking, he says whatever the hell he wants, and _suffers no consequences_. So when that happens, they’re like “Yeah, our guy told them to fuck off, and _nobody did anything!_” which they are somewhat proud of, in that it validates that they’re backing a strong and powerful candidate who’s on their side. So from their perspective, you’ve got a wildly rich, powerful guy who talks relentless shit to his enemies and generally looks like he gets his way due to force of personality, and he’s on their side with that “R” after his name. What’s _not_ to like from their perspective? That’s the guy you want- he gets (your) stuff done, after all. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592/21 "2025-11-05T16:24:17Z")
You’re making the mistake I’m talking about. You’re implying MAGA is voting against their own interests. They are not, they got exactly what they wanted. Someone that is hurting _those_ people. That is all they care about and Trump is delivering in spades. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-the-real-true-massive-problem-with-trump/1024592.md?page=2)