If (as I believe) Trump actually IS mentally ill ...

[11 Bravo]

ie: a sociopathic malignant narcissist, do we have to cut him some slack?

Full disclosure: I'm a big karma guy. I love the smell of grilled pork, so I want the fat sonuvabitch to stumble into a lava vent.

But I'm less accepting than many of my fellow DUers.

So, if he's nuts, does he get a pass?

[PJMcK]

1. Nope

Neither do his enablers.

LOCK THEM UP!!!

[abqtommy]

2. +100 Spot on!

[11 Bravo]

4. Oh, the enablers are a whole 'nother story.

The Grahams, the McConnells, the Ernsts, the McSalleys, and every other gutless Republican sycophant will have to be dealt with at a later time.
But Trump needs to be the main focus.

[elleng]

3. NO WAY,

but sadly the cabinet and congress have failed their 25 amd. responsibilities.

'Section 4. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.'

https://constitution.findlaw.com/amendment25.html

[PJMcK]

9. Yet somehow, Republicans call themselves Patriots

It's still baffling to me why the Republican party circled the wagons around Trump, of all people!

The dirt and corruption must be so deep and evil that even a drop has to be protected. I cannot imagine any other reason other than treason.

McConnell's Senate should go down in history as the most corrupt and un-American in our history... if we survive.

[marble falls]

5. IF? And, no.

[Dan]

6. as someone said,

if Trump was on fire, I would not piss on him.

[11 Bravo]

8. I once said that I would piss on the parts that weren't burning.

I've had no reason to change my opinion, other than a growing wish to be able to piss napalm.

[PJMcK]

11. Ah, just shit on his face

Sorry.

I'm angry tonight.

[11 Bravo]

12. He'd have to pay extra for that.

Golden showers from Russian hookers are one thing, but I think Vlad would charge him a bit more for scat action.

[PJMcK]

13. Ah, I see

You're an Aristocrat!

[mmbrevo]

16. He'd probably enjoy that.

[2naSalit]

7. Nope.

[Caliman73]

10. What do you mean by a pass?

Do you mean that he is not held accountable for his actions? Do you mean that he isn't judged as harshly as a result of the knowledge that he has a mental illness?

I don't think that the question is that simple.

Trump likely has one or more personality disorders which influence his world view and his behaviors. When we are talking about accountability however, the bar is much higher than simply having the obstacle of a mental health disorder. Legally the standard is whether you have capacity to understand the consequences of your actions. Not necessarily knowing right from wrong but understanding cause and effect. Trump knows what he is doing and likely knows, but does not really care about the damage he is doing to get what he wants. I think aside from narcissism that Trump has Anti-Social Personality Disorder, which shares traits with Narcissistic Personality Disorder but has some significant differences. Trump has no empathy in my opinion. He does not seem to be able to form attachments to people aside from a transactional one in which he uses them for his self gain. That is seriously messed up, but it doesn't shield you from consequences. Most serial killers have that lack of empathy. It is what allows them to kill without remorse.

There are concerns that Trump is developing dementia which then becomes more complicated as dementia starts to affect the ability to understand cause and effect and other concepts necessary to assign responsibility for ones actions. I personally don't think Trump is at that threshold yet. I think that while he is given over to his impulses, that he is still responsible for his actions and needs to be held accountable.

People with mental illness are held accountable for their actions everyday in this country. You can have Schizophrenia, commit a crime, and still be held to answer for the crime. A defense could be that you were psychotic and not able to differentiate between reality and your psychotic process. You still get locked up for treatment until you are not a danger to others. If it is determined that psychotic process was NOT the driver of your actions, then you can certainly go to jail or prison.

[smirkymonkey]

14. No, not at all. He knows what he is doing.

He is aware of the consequences of his actions. The disorders you have mentioned are common in most every criminal and run-of-the-mill horrible person on this planet. Just because they have no empathy and only care about themselves does not absolve them of their crimes or sins. They are fully present in reality.

I saw a clip a few days ago and a man was being interviewed and he was telling the host about someone who had been in the room when someone said to Trump "But the people in this country are so divided!" and Trump replied "I know, I like it like that!". I am paraphrasing, but basically the point is that he knows the damage he is causing and he is delighting in it. He is a sadistic, evil pig and the day he dies will be one of the happiest days of my life.

[dalton99a]

15. I don't give a shit what ailment he's got.

[mr_lebowski]

17. Those are personality disorders, which are different from mental illness ...

So ... NO, we don't.