I've been reading this book and have to admit it was a bit eye opening. It's basically got contributions from a bunch of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals about his mental state. Some of it is obvious bashing but other parts were, I thought balanced and fair. The portrait that emerges isn't pretty. Key themes I found are the following:
1.
There is something wrong with him - Actually more than one thing it seems. A study indicated that 50% of presidents before 1974 suffered from some kind of mental illness so that's not the big thing. It's the number of things he has in combination that seems to be the concern.
2.
He's a Narcissist - It turns out Narcissism seems to common among people who arise to such positions. A healthy amount of it is ok but the general consensus is that he's not a healthy type. The biggest issue that was described is that he surrounds himself with "yes men". The guy who wrote the Art of the Deal and spent the better part of a year with him said he never once heard someone disagree with him in that entire year. I think you want a president that listens to different perspectives and makes thoughtful decisions based on those perspectives. It seems he doesn't really do this.
3.
He is a bully - I don't know how anyone could disagree with this. Any kind of criticism is met with sharp attacks in return and be damned with the truth. I've gotten used to it and some of the things are funny, but he's the president of the United States for God's sake. He's apparently made statements about using nuclear weapons - why do we have them if we can't use them, etc.
4.
He is focused on NOW and gives little thought to the future - I hope it isn't true but several of these people say this is the case, one reason being that his actions are often destructive to himself. He reacts in the moment like a child in a schoolyard - beating his chest at the slightest provocation.
5.
He is paranoid - There seems to be plenty of evidence of this. They compared him to Richard Nixon. At the least, he seems to have some kind of persecution complex.
6.
He's a sociopath - At first, I had a hard time with this but the general consensus that he doesn't trust anyone and he doesn't really care about other people very much. I mean, look at this list. A number of these obviously apply.
Profile of the Sociopath
- Glibness and Superficial Charm
- Manipulative and Conning - They never recognize the rights of others and see their self-serving behaviors as permissible. They appear to be charming, yet are covertly hostile and domineering, seeing their victim as merely an instrument to be used. They may dominate and humiliate their victims.
- Grandiose Sense of Self - Feels entitled to certain things as "their right."
- Pathological Lying - Has no problem lying coolly and easily and it is almost impossible for them to be truthful on a consistent basis. Can create, and get caught up in, a complex belief about their own powers and abilities. Extremely convincing and even able to pass lie detector tests.
- Lack of Remorse, Shame or Guilt - A deep seated rage, which is split off and repressed, is at their core. Does not see others around them as people, but only as targets and opportunities. Instead of friends, they have victims and accomplices who end up as victims. The end always justifies the means and they let nothing stand in their way.
- Shallow Emotions - When they show what seems to be warmth, joy, love and compassion it is more feigned than experienced and serves an ulterior motive. Outraged by insignificant matters, yet remaining unmoved and cold by what would upset a normal person. Since they are not genuine, neither are their promises.
- Incapacity for Love
- Need for Stimulation - Living on the edge. Verbal outbursts and physical punishments are normal. Promiscuity and gambling are common.
- Callousness/Lack of Empathy - Unable to empathize with the pain of their victims, having only contempt for others' feelings of distress and readily taking advantage of them.
- Poor Behavioral Controls/Impulsive Nature - Rage and abuse, alternating with small expressions of love and approval produce an addictive cycle for abuser and abused, as well as creating hopelessness in the victim. Believe they are all-powerful, all-knowing, entitled to every wish, no sense of personal boundaries, no concern for their impact on others.
- Early Behavior Problems/Juvenile Delinquency - Usually has a history of behavioral and academic difficulties, yet "gets by" by conning others. Problems in making and keeping friends; aberrant behaviors such as cruelty to people or animals, stealing, etc.
- Irresponsibility/Unreliability - Not concerned about wrecking others' lives and dreams. Oblivious or indifferent to the devastation they cause. Does not accept blame themselves, but blames others, even for acts they obviously committed.
- Promiscuous Sexual Behavior/Infidelity - Promiscuity, child sexual abuse, rape and sexual acting out of all sorts.
- Lack of Realistic Life Plan/Parasitic Lifestyle - Tends to move around a lot or makes all encompassing promises for the future, poor work ethic but exploits others effectively.
- Criminal or Entrepreneurial Versatility -Changes their image as needed to avoid prosecution. Changes life story readily.
6.
He's suffering cognitive decline - He's the oldest president we have had so it isn't entirely surprising. It does seem clear that he is far less articulate than he was 15 years ago - using words like "huge", "tremendous", the incoherent rambling sentences, etc. His father suffered from Alzheimer's and that does seem to run in families.
7.
He is delusional - It seems clear that one of two things is going on. Either he is a compulsive liar or he has his own distorted sense of reality. I am reminded of
Elizabeth Holmes - the founder of Theranos.
Anyway, that's what I've taken out of it so far.
There was some debate as to whether he is crazy like fox or just crazy. I likely vote for the latter.
It's easy to think of him as sort of entertaining character who is shaking things up and (in my case) implementing some policies that I agree with.
The key point of it all is that it's dangerous to have a person like this with their hand on the nuclear trigger. How would he fare if circumstances like the Cuban Missle Crisis occurred - or when there was a false alarm that 2500 Soviet warheads were headed towards the US in Carter's administration. Is he the kind of guy you want in that position?
