So, what motivated Trump to want to get elected and stay in office?

[OAITW r.2.0]

I mean, his 1st term wasn't exactly all sunshine and roses. He managed to survive 2 Impeachments because Senate Republicans took a walk on the rule of law. His polling sucked and everyday brought more ridicule and legal entanglements.

A person who obviously liked the perks of the office, but really didn't like the work that the office required. He could have simply stumbled off to a blissful life as an ex-President....doing his ego rallies until the end of his miserable life.

Instead, he was willing to attempt an overthrown of our election system to remain in the Office. He must have known that the repercussions from the J6 Insurrection would have assured another term of endless investigations and exposes.

Now this Mara Lego mess. What was his interest in retaining secret docs of spies? The money that he'd make selling out the network to the highest bidder? Seems like pretty small money for a so-called billionaire, given the risk of exposure that could be uncovered at some point.

I never really understood his motivation to run in the 1st place. He had no vision for a better future for the USA that he ever laid out. Why burden himself with the headaches of such an office, when he could have played golf full time while getting his ego polished by Fox News whenever he had the urge to comment on national/international events?

The bottom line seems to be that he really didn't have a choice. Something was compelling him to run in 2016, something compelled him to attempt an overthrow of our elections in 2020, and something compelled him to take top-secret docs as he was exiting the WH .

I keep thinking kompromat. No idea what it was, but it had to be something very personally significant to motivate him to risk his future on.

[Irish_Dem]

1. Money, immunity from prosecution, and adoration.

[FarPoint]

2. He had goals set by Putin to complete...

He was not prepared for loosing this time since I believe Putin helped him will the first run...The lost election sent tRump into full panic mode...we know what his action were with consequences to follow.

I believe he ran again to close up all the loose ends set up to take over democracy and make America a dictatorship. He needed this re-election....now, we see the panic of a maniac.

[Siwsan]

3. I don't think he ever really expected to win. My guess is he planned to financially exploit his loss

Much like he's doing, now.

He would have been much better off, too. The likelihood is people would have eventually become bored. Except for the courts. I kind of think that situation would have still been a problem for him

[Claustrum]

13. Honestly, if he is just another failed presidential candidate who talks crazy,

I doubt there would be as much public or media attentions on him. And he would be able to pocket the money he grifted without much scrutiny.

[tinrobot]

4. Some theorize he ran because he wanted a better deal with NBC for "The Apprentice".

He figured if he got visibility as a politician, his celebrity stock would rise.

He never expected to win, so he said whatever the hell he wanted. Somehow, that resonated, and he became a contender. Add in some foreign interference, a clueless electorate, and... here we are.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

5. Putin. And I don't believe Trump would have run if he didn't expect to win against Hillary.

Look at how well he took losing to Biden...

[at140]

6. Trump claims he ran because he wants to change America!

He already was living a grand lifestyle. Mar-a-Lago is more luxurious than White House ever will be. So it is either seeking fame or the desire to mold the country in his way of thinking.

[LeftInTX]

7. He's a tabloid reality star. Obama insulted him.

US President: The ultimate "celebrity apprentice, reality show"...

Just a stupid power play to prove that he's "the world's most powerful and famous person"

All fame and no substance...

He has to be in the news 24/7

[bullimiami]

8. He's power mad. I agree he probably didn't expect to win to start with.

Once he had the power he was crazed drunk with it.
Insane with it.

If he was in again it would have surely been mad king donald time.

[Stuart G]

9. Money, Money, and More Money...That is it, and That is all...

[mcar]

10. IIRC, he didn't expect to win

He was, as always, in it for the money he could get from the rubes.

He kept the grift going in the WH and obviously loved being the big cheese.

[underpants]

11. Attention, become a rain maker, and to be a monkey wrench

Melania certainly didn’t want him to win. We know that.

I think he never really thought he’d win. The massive Repub field let him win the nomination.
He loses but still wins in his mind so he can play victim from time to time on twitter or Fox. If nothing else he says the things THEY never want said. He fires up a base that THEY (the Repubs) counted on but wanted to keep out of sight. All of this upsets the system which is what Putin wanted.

[2naSalit]

12. I've got a whpper for ya...

I think he was lured by the visions of wealth/power/immunity and adoration, as mentioned above because that part is blatantly obvious.

Those wet dreams were given life of possibility by the likes of pootin and others who would like to see the US thrown into disarray and eventually crumble.

He was probably promised control/dictatorship of North America by his encouraging benefactors.

All he had to do was ride the magic carpet of election theft and do as instructed which was to deconstruct the US government from within so his directors* could get on with their takeover of other continents without US hindrance. That he had so much support from Congressional elements is likely due to their desire for the same advantage of position without merit.

*I suspect the whole plan was pitched to him as a reality show format that would have him as the star with complete license to wing it as long as he performed certain tasks, including giving up our secrets while setting us up for rapid failure. Some of the tactics employed in the last several years are described in The Shock Doctrine and have been worked out in many countries prior to this.

[OAITW r.2.0]

19. Sounds plausible....but I think there was a stick as well as a bunch of carrots.

The failed uprising on Jan. 6 th should have been a wake-up call to Trump to get retired and quiet. Instead he stole top secret dossiers on our human intel. Why? Were they important in writing the Trump memoirs?

That stick was a club that Putin had on Trump. What was that stick?

And what was the Alfa Bank direct connection all about?

[2naSalit]

20. He is certainly...

In fear of pootin but his reasons for all that cache of docs was his fulfilling of many orders as well as holding on to a little something for himself.

I think he gave away and sold intel, suspected he'd do it before he was even sworn in.

Now he's caught and desperate.

I'll be watching the next hearings! And watching this saga which I hope literally hangs the bastard.

[CrispyQ]

14. Ego & money. In Trump's case, I think they're equal motivators.

I think running started as a PR stunt more than anything, but he came to love the crowds, & that he could say anything outrageous & his fawning cult would open their wallets.

[hatrack]

15. Revenge. Grifting a close second, but revenge was #1

"I'll show them all!! I'll make them pay!!"

[gulliver]

16. To be above the law

The Republican Party is allowing Trump and people like him to use its house as a hideout.

[llmart]

17. He was Putin's agent.

Putin promised him the presidency in return for something (a Trump tower in Moscow?). When he couldn't deliver, it turned into fear of what Putin would have his henchmen do to him.

[usonian]

18. I read that he ran on a wager, when his show was cancelled.

The rest is история.


For more behind the people behind the curtain:

“Democracy in Crisis: We’ve Been Headed Here for Decades.” Part 1of 8
https://m.dailykos.com/stories/2021/8/6/2044226/-America-2021-The-Good-the-Bad-the-Ugly
Read all 8 to get the "plan" in detail.
This is all a Russian plan. Started years ago.
https://pastebin.com/raw/evbnN5y7

He was just a front-runner for some long term evil plans.

[JI7]

21. It's the disproportional representation that Red states have

when it comes to presidential elections and makeup of the Senate.