# Why Trump Ran for President **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [September 27, 2022, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317 "2022-09-27T13:55:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2022, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/42 "2022-09-29T14:29:29Z")
> [@toms0321](#): > > If you do a serious open minded comparisons from Democrats Bidens political and economic polices you can see the real difference between Trumps policies and Bidens policies. Trump was one of the great Keynesian Presidents, I give you that. He had no problem overthrowing conservative ideology in his administrations provisions of direct financial aid to Americans during COVID. Remember when he jacked up his own administrations budget deal because he wanted BIGGER checks for all Americans? A true New Deal Liberal, a man Keynesian to the core when push came to shove. He also had no problem realizing that AFG was a shit show, that the Taliban were already running the country, so he, rightfully, negotiated our withdrawal. Thing is, Biden is also a Keynesian and Biden agreed with Trump and executed the planned withdrawal. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats2)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2022, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/43 "2022-09-29T15:10:44Z")
Trump’s no war monger, I grant him that. He thinks those who serve in the military are chumps and suckers. He said so. “What’s in it for them?” ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2022, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/44 "2022-09-29T20:22:38Z")
Howard Stern summarized it pretty well. I’ll sort of go over what Stern and others have figured out: **Trump needs adoration and to be the center of attention. It is an absolute obsession, nearly a mental illness if not one. He absolutely needs to be praised and lives to have all eyes on him. That’s why the rallies are what he wants, not the normal campaign stuff.** In the O’Relley Factor book(from the late 1990’s), yes the one by Bill O’Reilley, he wrote about Trump. This wa 15-17 years before Trump ran for president. Bill O’Reilley wrote that Trump was the absolutely most obsessed with fame and atttention person he’d ever met. A full-blown addiction. Running for president, and sadly actually getting all the way there, gave Trump what he’d always wanted. Praise, attention, and psuedo-love. I blame Fred Trump, at least in part. The older son drank himself to death. Don Trump is obviously totally obsessive about himself. It could not have been a good upbringing. I believe the sister turned out OK. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2022, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/45 "2022-09-29T20:24:27Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](#): > > Trump’s no war monger, I grant him that. He thinks those who serve in the military are chumps and suckers. He said so. “What’s in it for them?” Yes, he called those that died “losers” and those that enlisted or fought “suckers”. It requires being able to think of serving others, something he can not process. ---
**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:** [September 30, 2022, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/46 "2022-09-30T17:32:58Z")
> [@ratatoskK](#): > > I think he did it for the grift (campaign money) and didn’t really expect to win. This is it. He wanted to get his name out there (even more than it already was) to boost his brand and it didn’t occurr to him that he might win until he kept gaining popularity. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2022, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/47 "2022-10-01T01:12:15Z")
And if Trump had lost in 2016, it would have been Hilary who stole the election… I was ahead in the voting, and then something happened! Imagine being unable to fathom that you don’t always win. And if it looks like you lost, then somebody MUST have cheated. That’s the only possible explanation. The only one. How did someone like that make it through middle school? ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2022, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/48 "2022-10-01T03:05:36Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > And if Trump had lost in 2016, it would have been Hilary who stole the election… She still stole the popular vote. He even tried to have it investigated. She did such a sneaky job that they found absolutely no evidence of it. ---
**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:** [October 1, 2022, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/49 "2022-10-01T13:06:19Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](#): > > Trump’s no war monger, I grant him that. He thinks those who serve in the military are chumps and suckers. He said so. “What’s in it for them?” Right. I see it as consistent lack of interest in the rest of the world. This sucks in a thousand ways, but the one good thing is he’s so uninterested in the world, that includes not bothering to invade or attack it militarily. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2022, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/50 "2022-10-01T21:55:22Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > She still stole the popular vote. He even tried to have it investigated. She did such a sneaky job that they found absolutely no evidence of it. Yeah, millions of illegal votes were cast. “All of them for Clinton”, he claims. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2022, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/51 "2022-10-02T14:25:02Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Yeah, millions of illegal votes were cast. “All of them for Clinton”, he claims. Some people might say that’s delusional thinking, but he is “a very stable _genius_” as opposed to an unstable genius. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2022, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/52 "2022-10-03T14:00:20Z")
Although I could easily imagine Trump wanting to bomb another country if their leader did something to piss him off. “Sir, we cannot attack France – they are an ally.” ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2022, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/53 "2022-10-03T21:08:52Z")
“But they called me a poopyhead! Launch the nukes!” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2022, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/54 "2022-10-03T21:11:08Z")
“Will no one rid me of this turbulent Paris?” ---
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/55 "2022-10-10T06:00:51Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Obama embarrasses Trump at WH correspondents dinner (2012). That’s it. Trump always wanted to be respected by the elites, the truly rich in NYC, and he was a clown among them. Ever saw the film Devil’s Advocate, with Pacino? Not a good film. It was filmed in Trump’s garish apartement, with no modifications. The crew was laughing at him and his apartment. We need not go any further [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/I1z2gWyB0GA/hqdefault.jpg "That's It Lucy Charlie Brown Christmas") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1z2gWyB0GA) ---
**Author:** ![Kedikat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/56 "2022-10-10T06:16:50Z")
But everyone else on your particular vote for list is in it for the good of the people. Altruists all. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/57 "2022-10-10T10:26:44Z")
That seems unlikely. How is this in any way relevant? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/58 "2022-10-10T10:58:22Z")
One side has some people who desire fame, power, and wealth, and the other side wants to violently end democracy. So they’re basically the same. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/59 "2022-10-10T15:08:52Z")
> [@Mike\_Mabes](#): > > It was filmed in Trump’s garish apartement, with no modifications. The crew was laughing at him and his apartment. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/9wGWtDXndPc/maxresdefault.jpg "The Devil's Advocate - apartment at Trump Tower") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wGWtDXndPc) ---
**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:** [October 10, 2022, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/60 "2022-10-10T16:09:41Z")
> [@Mike\_Mabes](#): > > Trump always wanted to be respected by the elites, the truly rich in NYC, and he was a clown among them. Not only the respect of the real-rich elites, but also the acclamation of the NY cultural influencer elite – to whom he was always the “short fingered vulgarian” (those elites overlap but are not the same). Neither side would embrace him as “one of them” because he wasn’t, either by legacy or temperament. He was a punchline and that ate at him. Obama’s rise was a special affront because it meant the elevation of everything that is not-him to _above_ him. But he was able to pick up that this was an opportunity: because like everyone else he could tell it meant that same thing to **millions** in “the base” that the GOP had so far only used as election fodder. But unlike others, he took that opening to go to that “base” saying: “those weak establishment Republicans _allowed this to happen_ by being afraid to say these things out loud”. Whether or not it got him to the presidency, this time it would gather him a goodly amount of public support and money. It worked, better than he probably ever imagined. Like with many of his big transactions, he was able to make the Big Deal go through… only to afterwards have the whole thing fall apart – but his whole schtick has always been to not care about what happens after he makes the headline. ---
**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:** [October 11, 2022, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317/61 "2022-10-11T13:14:32Z")
Good summary. That outer-borough resentment/striving/envy/insecurity was well explored in the film “Saturday Night Fever,” and also is part of what underlies the film “Summer of Sam” and the TV show “All in the Family.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-trump-ran-for-president/972317.md?page=4)