Forum Topic

Is Trump actually insane?

The following is text of an actual part of a speech delivered by the Trumpster at a recent rally:"I have broken more Elton John records, he seems to have a lot of records. And I, by the way, I don’t have a musical instrument. I don’t have a guitar or an organ. No organ. Elton has an organ. And lots of other people helping. No we’ve broken a lot of records. We’ve broken virtually every record. Because you know, look I only need this space. They need much more room. For basketball, for hockey and all of the sports, they need a lot of room. We don’t need it. We have people in that space. So we break all of these records. Really we do it without like, the musical instruments. This is the only musical: the mouth. And hopefully the brain attached to the mouth. Right? The brain, more important than the mouth, is the brain. The brain is much more important."If you want to check, here is the linkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbHKg1keVskRambling and incoherent don't even begin to describe it.....

Thelma Leach ● 2424d16 Comments

No, but you are suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome.Trump likes to talk off the cuff. He's not very good at it, but he likes doing it, even though he could afford top quality speech writers. Most people who try to speak off the cuff in front of a large number of people for any period of time would sound incoherent. It is in part deliberate.  George Osborne wrote a column in the Spectator magazine during the presidential election campaign. He met Ivanka at a New York party and had asked if her father was doing any mock debates for the debates with Hillary. Ivanka said he wasn't because he didn't want to come across as too slick when on the stage with Clinton. So there is some method to his madness; Trump wants to come across as authentic even if that means he's ungrammatical or incoherent sometimes. Anyone for a cup of covfefe?

Vlod Barchuk ● 2419d

Actually the more worrying thing could be the people who think he is wonderful.Definately some crazies amongst them. The nra, kkk, etc.

Peter Chadburn ● 2419d

Trump can afford to appear rambling and incoherentwith his stream of conscious nonssense as he feelsunder no obligation to try and impress the media.Most other people in such a position of responsibility would be on their best behaviourHaving never done so at any point in his lifewhich superficially, bankruptcies aside appears to have been a success, Trump feels under no such obligation top start now..Basically he never expected to become president and having done so he soon realised how complicated things actually were. Sounding off on Twitter in the middle of the night and making world headlines is about the only thing he can do without officialsbreathing down his neck. One of the perks of the job along with the holidays.  So one of his first moves was lowering taxes for the better off. If instead Trump started raising taxes on the better off, increased the value of food stamps and introduced free universalhealth care for all, or even least hinted at doing soat some point, then that might well be grounds for thinking he was suffering from dementia.michael adams...

Michael Adams ● 2419d

But are these records?The US economy grew by more than 4.1% in 4 quarters of Obama's presidency - so why is this a record?  Time will tell if it continues to grow.  There are some indications that exports to China increased by more than expected, as China imported items that will soon be subject to tariffs. US unemployment steadily declined from 10% in October 2009 to 4.7% in February 2017 when Trump took office.  This indicates a significant decline in unemployment under Obama of over 5%.It may well be that the US economy performs miracles under the Trump presidency, but it's a bit early to tell. However, my concern is not primarily with what he said, but how he said it.  Rambling incoherence is not a great attribute for a politician - could it perhaps signal some form of dementia?

Thelma Leach ● 2420d

The records Trump is presumably referring to are these -quote- "Since the election, the S&P 500 is up more than 33 percent, advancing a historic bull run that began in 2009. Unemployment has fallen to 3.9 percent to the around the lowest since 1969, and the economy expanded at a 4.1 percent pace last quarter.Earlier Friday, Trump referenced Target CEO Brian Cornell's optimistic comments about consumer spending during an interview with CNBC's "Squawk Box."- unquotehttps://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/24/trump-says-us-economy-setting-records-on-virtually-every-front.htmlNow while to the casual observer, along with  seasoned and respected journalists and authorssuch as Michael Woolff and Bob Berstein, alongwith White Hosue insiders Trump may appear to have the mentality of a 6 year old the fact remains that "the numbers" as our US cousins like to call them, tell a quite different story.So that along with trying to work out how a vaccuous blowhard TV personality such as Donald Trump got elected to the White House - (which actuallyisn't all that surpising IMHO) its maybe alsonecessary to ponder why the US economy appears on the face of it to be successfully weathering all these "storms". Forthcoming tariff wars nonwithstanding.  michael adams...

Michael Adams ● 2421d

Oh go on - have a go!

Thelma Leach ● 2421d

You might think that. I couldn't possibly comment,

Fred Hunt ● 2421d

I lobbed my share of criticism at Obama. But yeah, I miss a President capable of articulating coherent thoughts in complete and grammatically-correct sentences.     --Ana Navarro (1971-    )       (Republican strategist and CNN political commentator,       in a Twitter.com tweet; September 7, 2018)       https://twitter.com/ananavarro

Graham Weeks ● 2422d

Definitely a personality disorder. But not insane. A bully yes who does not accept any hint of criticism. who also likes other bullies and authoritarian leaders. who despises democracy and loves to lie. his behaviour to damage the press is purely for self preservation. with his links to Russian finance for keeping his businesses afloat when other banks would not help him shows that he has plenty to hide and of course the best form of defence is attack!! so i believe he is quite sane and rational. he believes he is a genius and keeps telling us how clever he is!! definitely no humility. he talks nonsense very well and appears sincere and earnest. he wants to be natural and only wants yes men around him. but the political agenda shared with some of his cabinet is a total destruction of the middle classes and democracy only for billionaires. an appalling agenda with some very nasty people in charge.

Peter Chadburn ● 2422d

And your point is what exactly?You have still not addressed my original point.  The speech shows that Trump is incapable of using logical or rational arguments or fashioning them into a coherent narrative.  If a British politician, of whatever party, made such public utterances, they would be widely ridiculed.  The ability to think logically and rationally would seem to me to be a fundamental requisite for anyone making decisions that influence the lives of their fellow countrymen. Perhaps Trump should employ a decent speechwriter, although he probably thinks that he doesn't need one - a delusion, if the above is anything to go by.

Thelma Leach ● 2423d

'A friend of mine lives in Mrs May's constituency and says she is an excellent constituency MP. 'Which IIRC is what catholics said of the late I R K Paisley and it is what I, far too conservative to be a Tory now, say of Steve Pound. And many Americans, rightly or wrongly, say Trump is good for the interests of their country.  I could not possibly comment.

Graham Weeks ● 2423d

I suppose what exercises me is the irrationality and incoherence of the speech quoted.If our own PM was to address a public event in a similar manner, would we not consider that, if not actually in need of psychiatric intervention, she might benefit from a long rest in a safe facility away from sharp objects?A friend of mine lives in Mrs May's constituency and says she is an excellent constituency MP. Perhaps this is the level at which she should have stayed?  I think you are right about the sense of duty that propels her - this is a real mess she has to sort out and if she manages it she won't get any thanks from at least half of the population.

Thelma Leach ● 2423d

Re. Trump, insane?Umm, I guess it depends upon one's definition.  Insane, I would say no.  Trump, a sociopath?  I would say yes.  But that doesn't make him any/much worse than many other politicians on the world stage.  Theresa May? Seriously deluded, I would say.  She has zero self-awareness of how utterly incompetent she is, either when she was Home Secretary, or latterly as PM. It is only the will of a dutiful vicar's only child, that belief of self-entitlement to 'do good' that has propelled her, and held her together throughout her political life. Truthfully, she wouldn't even be fit to run a church fete.  Self-belief and self-entitlement are extremely powerful emotions.

Tony Heath ● 2424d

I have never seen evidence of Hitler's insanity - only his evil.  I understand some of what Trump is saying, not all. Anyone here clinically insane is sectioned. Erring politicians tend not to be reelected.

Graham Weeks ● 2424d

One would hope not - but remember that Hitler was originally democratically elected.  Was he completely sane, do you think?This speech by Trump makes no sense at all - it is either the musings of somebody far from sane or someone who has lost touch with reality.  If a British politician made such a public speech do you not think we would be worried about their mental competence?

Thelma Leach ● 2424d

Insane people do not get elected president.

Graham Weeks ● 2424d