Trump’s final descent
George Conway, ex-husband of perennial Trump propagandist Kellyanne, thinks that not only is Donald Trump delusional, not only is he narcissistic, he also has antisocial personality disorder. The diagnostic criteria for APD certainly fit Trump, particularly this one: “Lack of remorse, indifference to or rationalising having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another person.”
Hey, and speaking of George Conway, who remembers the persistent conspiracy theorists who INSISTED that Conway was part of some long con, that he and Kellyanne were in cahoots and that we were fools for not seeing it? Anybody remember those people? Anybody know what happened to them?
Anyway, I’ve always thought very highly of Mr Conway. I wish more Republicans (or ex-Republicans now?) were more like George. We wouldn’t be in the hell of a mess we are in now, and Trump would have never been elected president in the first place.
George Conway always maintained that Trump is profoundly mentally ill and has been for many years, and that his mental illness ought to automatically disqualify him from the presidency, or any high office. Or any low office for that matter. I agree with Mr Conway about that too.
But there are rumblings, especially among his staff, that Trump may have acquired a brand new mental disorder of late. Specifically, PTSD, that is, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. A particular source in Trump’s inner circle has noticed that Trump has become fixated on a video clip that shows the moment from the July 13 assassination attempt when he was bloodied on his right ear by a bullet or a shard of glass or whatever. (Does anyone really still care?) That could explain why Trump is laying relatively low and arranging rallies in smaller venues. Maybe he’s just not up to it. Maybe he’s scared, or traumatised, or having nightmares and is unable to sleep. Maybe all of the above.
“He’s been watching that seven-second clip of how close he was to getting shot right in the head — over and over and over again,” said a Republican close to the campaign, Vanity Fair reported. The same Republican thinks Trump may be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. PTSD is a condition common among soldiers and others who’ve witnessed or experienced traumatic events. PTSD sufferers can be easily startled, are constantly on edge, have difficulty concentrating and are prone to “aggressive outbursts,” according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
Ordinarily I wouldn’t be indifferent to the suffering of someone with PTSD. But with Trump I’m willing to make an exception. Trump gave the entire country PTSD. In fact, and I can personally account for this, he gave the entire world PTSD. We are still recovering from it. So anything that unhinges Trump, or renders him skittish or unsure or hesitant, anything that hurts his campaign, I’m in favour of it.
With the Kamala Harris/Tim Walz juggernaut sweeping into the lead I am not the least sorry for Trump in anything, least of all his purported PTSD. In fact I relish it. I’m what you might call indifferent to his suffering, just as he’s indifferent to the suffering of others. I don’t know about you, brothers and sisters, but I’m beginning to think Trump is on his final descent, a tailspin from which he will be unable to pull up. And I’m glad. And, as ever, ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, comrades and friends, stay safe.
Robert Harrington is an American expat living in Britain. He is a portrait painter.