Trump Has Lost His Grip on Reality

We are watching the President of the United States descend into madness. Donald Trump has long been a malignant narcissist, but now he seems unable to distinguish reality from his fantasies.

Trump has always had a gift for convincing himself and his followers that his lies and prejudices reflect the truth, that he “tells it as it is”. But now, the President seems untethered from the real world. The danger, for the US and the world, is that the leader of a superpower is making terrible decisions based on his illusions, not facts.

This disconnect could soon lead to war with Venezuela, a conflict that most Americans don’t want. They certainly never voted for it.

Scrooge on Steroids

Recently, the President’s behavior has exhibited a manic quality:

· Delivering a bizarre 18-minute rant on prime-time TV, shouting, at a breakneck pace

· Splashing his name willy-nilly on public buildings and government programs

· Repeatedly changing his “rationale” for attacking President Nicolàs Maduro of Venezuela

· Abruptly cancelling $25 billion of offshore wind farm projects based on specious claims that they jeopardize national security

The five wind farm projects had received the necessary approvals from the Biden Administration and been reviewed by the Defense Department. Most are in an advanced stage of construction.

Meanwhile, the President is acting like Scrooge on steroids, making life hell for many Americans who are already badly stretched economically. His tariffs are stoking inflation and will cost the average family roughly $1,700, according to the Yale Budget Lab State of U.S. Tariffs: November 17, 2025. In addition, up to 20 million Americans may soon lose their health insurance coverage because of Trump’s savage reductions in Medicaid eligibility and subsidies.

However, in his speech from the White House on December 19, Trump claimed that his tariffs were boosting the economy. He promised, yet again, that he would come up with a better health care plan for Americans. This was beyond tone-deaf. The President seemed oblivious to the pain his policies are inflicting on millions of his countrymen.

Trump is also terrorizing millions of undocumented immigrants, sending masked goons to arrest and deport hard-working, law-abiding people whose only “crime” was entering the US illegally. That’s a misdemeanor, like a traffic violation.

Economists have emphasized that immigration—both legal and illegal--is one of the main reasons that the American economy has outperformed all other Western nations and Japan over the past two decades.

A Mad King…or Just a Would-Be King?

Is Trump perhaps power-mad, rather than out of touch with reality? After all, he acts increasingly like a monarch. He even jokes about this, posting images of King Donald wearing a crown.

One could argue that Trump is acting rationally. It’s been obvious for the last 10 years that Trump wants to be an absolute ruler, like Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping. The President is therefore grabbing as much power as he can, aided and abetted by a supine Congress and a hyper-partisan Supreme Court.

Furthermore, dictators, and aspiring strongmen like Trump, tend to make big mistakes, because their advisors are too scared to contradict them. Putin and Xi have also blundered. Putin invaded Ukraine because, in his imperialistic fantasy, it is not a separate country. So far, his war has caused over a million casualties, including 600,000 dead and wounded Russian soldiers.

Xi badly bungled China’s response to Covid. First, his government denied that a problem existed—allowing the virus to spread--and then it enforced a rigid confinement policy that caused widespread misery.

Like Putin, Xi refuses to acknowledge that Taiwan has become a separate nation, with a distinct culture and a commitment to democracy. Xi may be willing to go to war with the US over Taiwan, even though that fight would make the war in Ukraine look like a minor skirmish. There is a huge risk that either side might resort to using nuclear weapons.

Key Differences

However, there are key differences between these leaders and Trump. Putin made major miscalculations in deciding to invade Ukraine, but they were fact-based. Ukraine is a much smaller nation, and it was not prepared for war with Russia. As Putin anticipated, the US and Europe have not provided enough assistance to Ukraine. Putin’s mistake was underestimating the Ukrainians’ courage, patriotism and love of freedom.

Xi eventually realized that his Covid policy had failed, and he reversed himself. His government has created a detailed, long-term plan for China to dominate crucial emerging industries…and it is working. China has seized leadership in wind and solar power and electric vehicles.

Trump’s short-sighted actions—the tariffs, the deportations, the vicious attacks on universities and green energy technology--are sabotaging the US economy. They are based on Trump’s illusions and hatreds, not facts. The President has already inflicted massive damage on the US, and he will probably wreak much more over the next three years.

Rational kings make intelligent decisions that will benefit their countries…and help the rulers to stay in power. Bad kings oppress their subjects, who may rise up and overthrow them. In the US context, that means voting for Democrats in the midterm elections

No Impulse Control

Here is another stark difference: Putin, Xi and other present-day strongmen are highly disciplined in their public comments and appearances. Unlike Trump, they control their impulses.

Trump prides himself on his freewheeling approach to politics. He has viewed his ability to make outrageous, attention-grabbing comments as a strength, a key part of his brand. But lately, Trump has been making wildly inappropriate statements with increasing frequency, causing even staunch supporters to cringe.

The President cavalierly blamed Rob Reiner’s death on the filmmaker’s supposed “Trump Derangement Syndrome”, without any basis for his remarks. However, no politics were involved, at all. This was a family tragedy. Reiner’s mentally disturbed son killed him and his wife.

At a rally in North Carolina on December 19, Trump talked at considerable length about his wife’s underwear, as he claimed that FBI agents rummaged through her bureau drawers during their search for classified documents at Mar-A-Lago in 2022. Trump even delved into details about how Melania Trump organizes her undergarments. The President was trying to attack the Deep State, but the effect was creepy and surreal.

Trump at North Carolina Rally/photo credit: Getty Images

Desecrating the White House

The “Walk of Fame”, a corridor in the White House, honors our nation’s past leaders with a portrait of every President…except one. Trump replaced Joe Biden’s picture with that of an autopen. Trump also installed plaques under each portrait, many of which belittle Democratic Presidents. They are written like his posts on Truth Social.

Here are two examples:

Biden’s plaque says he took office “as a result of the most corrupt Election ever seen in the United States.”

Former President Barack Obama’s plaque describes him as “one of the most divisive political figures in American History”. Obama’s retrospective favorability rating-–59%--is the highest among the past five presidents, according to Gallup.

This juvenile, public display of Trump’s neuroses and outright lies is not merely un-Presidential. It is a sign of an unsound mind.

Some Inconvenient Facts

In the past, Trump has been a master of propaganda. He won two elections in large part because he convinced many voters that these false claims were true:

· Most illegal immigrants were criminals or were taking jobs from Americans

· Joe Biden’s policies caused inflation

· Trump created the “greatest economy ever” in his first term and would “bring prices down” in his second

It helped Trump that his allegations dealt with issues that were somewhat abstract. Large numbers of Americans, particularly those in rural areas, may not have much--or any--contact with undocumented immigrants. Many voters understand their own economic position, but they lack the technical knowledge to analyze broad economic trends, like inflation. As a result, they were susceptible to Trump’s hucksterism.

The problem for Trump now is that he is lying to voters about matters that they experience directly in their daily lives. They know that his tariffs are driving up prices and squeezing their budgets. They know that Trump is cutting their Medicaid coverage to fund his tax cuts for the ultra-rich. It doesn’t matter how much Trump huffs and puffs in a speech about how great his policies are. Voters know that they are being screwed…and by whom.

That is why Trump’s favorability ratings have fallen to historically low levels. He is a remarkably unpopular President. According to well-respected polls such as Gallup and Reuters, only 35% to 40% of voters approve of his programs, including his economic policies. One of Trump’s great strengths has become a vulnerability.

Grounds for Hope

Sadly, the US is no longer a full-fledged democracy…but elections still count. King Donald is clearly worried that the peasants will revolt next November and vote the Democrats into power. Some talented, younger Democratic leaders have addressed voters’ concerns and won recent elections for governor in Virginia and New Jersey. That is encouraging.

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This is a season for renewal, hope and joy, a time to recharge our spiritual batteries before jumping back into the fray. I found comfort in two passages, quoted in a friend’s holiday card, from the Book of Micah and the Talmud:

“Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly now. Love mercy now. Walk humbly.”

“You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”

Best wishes for a happy and peaceful holiday season.

The Wall Street Democrat