Trump displays delusions of grandeur, distortions of reality in debate
Editor:
Harris used to pick juries. She has great instincts.
The debate and how Trump responded was very revealing – both about Trump and why his diehard supporters did not notice while it was on that she won.
To start, Trump was not able to look over at Harris. It’s called reactive formation and is a clear sign of insecurity. He put on a well rehearsed tough guy, glowering, face to mask fear. The tell for a poker player is his looking down and scowling, not making eye contact. His followers have long missed that tell.
Patriotic Americans – conservative or liberal – do not negotiate with communist dictators who invade other countries. When specifically asked, he failed twice to support Ukraine. He favors our enemy.
By pretending he can deal with Russia (without giving up Europe, whose interests he also ignored) Trump displayed delusions of grandeur. This is the guy who writes the North Korean dictator love letters to get things done.
Followers of that type of leader are typically authoritarian personalities themselves or people attracted to leaders with charismatic appeal. That is why his followers are not protesting his putting Patriotism second.
Bragging about well attended rallies while doubling down, in the same thought, insisting Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Ohio displays senility or what is called distortion of reality. He often distorts reality and often dehumanizes people in an appeal to racists or the other categories of people he (and his followers) distort and scapegoat.
He talked of his persecution. A jury with Republicans convicted Trump under a racketeering law and he says that is persecution. What it is is a delusion of persecution. In typical cases the gang members buy into that but in Trump’s case it’s simply a sign many followers also share from some form of persecution complex.
After 14 years and 60 failed votes to repeal another President’s health care plan (only now to admit the promised replacement was an undefined concept) he clearly demonstrated he suffers from a coping mechanism called projection as a defense. It allowed him to impress people with claims he was smarter than Obama.
Now that we know it was a charade it’s clear he is not a serious man and his claims back then projection. That need to be seen as superior – to project – makes Trump an easy mark.
Trump forcefully made the case he is highly respected abroad. But he merely named one reviled dictator. It’s called deflection and he uses that a lot. See above about those attracted to a perceived strong man or a charismatic man. In this situation authoritarians will miss it too. Serious people would have addressed the issue. Who abroad respects him?
Misrepresenting that nations pay tariffs when in fact tariffs are built into the price consumers pay the company (like a sales tax) is a ploy. It plays on distrust of better educated experts or relies on how people buy into easy answers – to the detriment of their pocketbook. (Harris knows how to deal with those types who compulsively lie and misrepresent. She has seen all sorts of personality disorders in her prosecution days. )
Coming to a debate and not laying out an economic plan is either a sign of senility or another sign of delusion of grandeur.
It was also telling that Trump took time to blame his “many” bad advisors but completely ignored the underlying accusations that he does not hold our men in uniform in high esteem. That again is deflection.
Trump threatened to jail other candidates and their donors. This betrays fear and insecurity. It is called coercive control. Again, it impresses both fellow bullies and followers of charismatic leaders.
Harris advising people to go to Trump rallies was brilliant! It is called trivialization and was used to suggest that Trump is not worthy of consideration. I suspect she must be sure he will continue to say outrageous things to fill in the gaps in his often broken train of thought – thoughts tending to go back to the past perceived slights, getting even, and scapegoating.
Harris did her home work on what makes Trump tick to draw him out so adroitly. She demonstrated her impressive intelligence and showed she will take practical positions to improve our life and country.
Besides focusing on us and showing she is a formidable leader, she shrugged off the biggest bully of the past decade or two and ate his lunch.
Conrad F. Cropsey
Albion
