# Would young Trump have been a better President than old Trump? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 14, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820 "2017-10-14T14:29:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/1 "2017-10-14T14:29:42Z")
I’ve been looking at a gallery of shots of Trump from his 20s to the present. It’s interesting seeing Trump as a young guy with his wife Ivana on his arm swanning through New York society, a Trump who back then was a Democrat. Let’s suppose he had decided to get into politics young and after winning a Senate race had later somehow beaten out Dukakis for the Democrat nomination for the Presidency and then had gone on to whip Bush Senior’s ass and become President in 1988 at the age of 42. (I’m assuming he was still a Democrat then but if not let’s suppose that he was for the sake of the argument.) Would he have governed then more intelligently than he’s governing now? I’m guessing his views were more liberal then as he was, at least nominally, a Democrat. He surely wasn’t the same lunatic then as he is now. Or was he? Let’s put it in a nutshell. If you were a voter in the 1988 Presidential Election and the candidates were George HW Bush and Donald J Trump which candidate would you vote for? ---
**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:** [October 14, 2017, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/2 "2017-10-14T14:33:16Z")
He still wouldn’t have been a good president—wouldn’t have the experience, the knowledge, or the temperament for the job. But Young Trump would be less senile and would have had less time for the toxic parts of his character to harden. ETA: Whoops–just saw this was in General Questions. It doesn’t look like a GQ sort of question—is that where you meant to post it? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/3 "2017-10-14T14:36:36Z")
It sure isn’t a GQ. Moved to Great Debates. Please consider what forum is most appropriate before posting. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![allotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@allotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/allotrope)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/4 "2017-10-14T14:38:58Z")
I don’t think that Trump has always been so out of touch with reality. Whether his current state of mind is age-related, medication-related or something else is open to discussion but I think a younger version of him wouldn’t have had some of these issues and would have probably been more liberal. It’s amazing to me how much having a black president for 8 years seems to gall so many people including Trump. It’s almost like he and the Republics view anything that Obama touched as being toxic and contaminated and therefore has to be destroyed. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/5 "2017-10-14T15:08:59Z")
The problem is nothing Trump says can be taken at face value, he will say anything. So looking at his statements from the past probably doesn’t matter much. Having said that, before Trump went insane with rage and disgust over having a black president, and before the dementia turned him into a complete mess of a human being he probably would’ve done a less bad job as president. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/6 "2017-10-14T15:30:49Z")
He would have had the same ill informed thoughts and childish impulses. He’d just have slightly better control of his mental executive function. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/7 "2017-10-14T15:37:42Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Having said that, before Trump went insane with rage and disgust over having a black president, and before the dementia turned him into a complete mess of a human being he probably would’ve done a less bad job as president. Talk about damning with faint praise! I happen to agree. He’d still be too thin-skinned and narcissistic to be an effective President, however. And, given the morals of the time (being pre-Clinton) and Trump’s age, a sex scandal that dooms his presidency is all but assured. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/8 "2017-10-14T16:10:32Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > But Young Trump would be less senile and would have had less time for the toxic parts of his character to harden. > [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > and before the dementia turned him into a complete mess of a human being he probably would’ve done a less bad job as president. Do either of you have cites for Trump’s senility or dementia? Actual medical cites, that is. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/9 "2017-10-14T16:15:42Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Do either of you have cites for Trump’s senility or dementia? Actual medical cites, that is. We can’t _prove_ Trump is a dotard. The world just _knows_. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/10 "2017-10-14T16:21:40Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Do either of you have cites for Trump’s senility or dementia? Actual medical cites, that is. People have these things called opinions. I believe that’s what you are seeing there. As for the question in the OP, just about as crazy (that’s my opinion, see) but with even less life experience? No, don’t think he’d be any better. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/11 "2017-10-14T16:23:45Z")
Sure, in the sense that 10 pounds of shit in a 5 pound bag is better than 20 pounds of shit in a 5 pound bag. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/12 "2017-10-14T16:27:22Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > People have these things called opinions. I believe that’s what you are seeing there. This is GD, not the Pit. We’re here to fight ignorance, not promote it. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/13 "2017-10-14T16:30:59Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > This is GD, not the Pit. We’re here to fight ignorance, not promote it. The irony; It burns. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/14 "2017-10-14T16:35:59Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Do either of you have cites for Trump’s senility or dementia? Actual medical cites, that is. So you think he’s just feigning it?😉 ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/15 "2017-10-14T16:44:58Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > This is GD, not the Pit. We’re here to fight ignorance, not promote it. End your second sentence after the fourth word, and I’d be more inclined to agree. I think most people could figure out whether the posters in question were referencing an actual medical diagnosis or not. I’m willing to be proven wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/16 "2017-10-14T16:55:25Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Do either of you have cites for Trump’s senility or dementia? Actual medical cites, that is. What’s the alternative? He’s faking the symptoms? ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/17 "2017-10-14T17:05:22Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > What’s the alternative? He’s faking the symptoms? Are you sure it isn’t just wishful thinking on your part? ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/18 "2017-10-14T17:12:14Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Are you sure it isn’t just wishful thinking on your part? I do kind of wish he was faking it. Sadly, it appears genuine. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/19 "2017-10-14T17:20:55Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > What’s the alternative? He’s faking the symptoms? That he was always like that? [His ghostwriter](https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/05/16/i-wrote-the-art-of-the-deal-with-trump-his-self-sabotage-is-rooted-in-his-past/?utm_term=.3f23ff435f71) certainly seems to think so. I would take GHWB over any version of Trump in a heartbeat, even if 1988 Trump’s political beliefs were closer to my own than Bush’s are. Some people simply do not have the temperament to be president, and electing one of them tends to do one’s political agenda more harm than good. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820/20 "2017-10-14T17:58:40Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I do kind of wish he was faking it. Sadly, it appears genuine. So you’ll be in court on Monday morning invoking the 25th Amendment? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-young-trump-have-been-a-better-president-than-old-trump/798820.md?page=2)