"I used to think Trump knew he was lying to us and didn't care. "

[riversedge]

I said this a while back--Trump can or might use his mental state as a defense.
He just might. Time will tell. Of course he would have to put his money into someone else's trust and I don't believe he would do that!==yet the prospect of jail time just might persuade him.




@BrianKarem
I used to think Trump knew he was lying to us and didn't care.

After watching two TV interviews with him this week, I think he doesn't know:
1. The difference between Obama, Clinton and Biden.
2. Who he is running against.
3. what's real.
4. The airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow.

He's demented.

That might just be his most viable defense strategy as he faces felony charges

Link to tweet

?s=20

[OAITW r.2.0]

1. What sane person would face a wall of legal evidence and continue to lie?

I am surprised that Melinia or the kids haven't started a legal proceeding to take over his assets.

[riversedge]

3. Who knows what is Really going on with that family?? His sons still defend

him in public--yet I do think they are worried what will happen --to his assists--and theirs!!

[DFW]

2. Put his money into someone else's trust--well, that makes an assumption

If his creditors come calling after such a move, I’m not sure there will be any money left.

If you have borrowed $5 billion and can only come up with $3 billion, you are only rich so long as those debts are not called in. Trump has already proved that he is more shadow than substance. I wouldn’t buy his debt for 5 cents on the dollar.

[betsuni]

4. People who say he knows what he's doing, evil genius, knows how to read the room, etc. are wrong.

People who say he's a moron and doesn't know anything are correct.

[riversedge]

22. ++++

[struggle4progress]

5. Mens rea matters. If he's been telling people to destroy evidence or to lie,

being a bit foggy around the edges may not make much difference

[CharleyDog]

6. Trump would have to prove his "mental" condition to satisfy the legal definition

He would have to submit himself to tests, and doctors, and meet the legal requirement of not competent.

(source: 24 years of Law and Order lol)

How could he run for president as not competent? Well, he always plays both sides of the coin, and is not logical, lives in bizarro world, nor does he care for norms, so I guess he could be "not competent" in a court of law, and then say, "I'm a genius."

[Wounded Bear]

29. And his mental midget minions thrive on that kind of paradox...nt

[Hortensis]

38. Oh, yeah. A majority thrive on belief that he's chosen by god,

which requires them to accept his choice of a (possibly) flawed agent. Happy duty that pulls all together for them, and glorifies all.

[RockRaven]

7. There is no real difference between the two, lying without care vs demented...

Because the only difference which matters in effect is where the limits of his depravity lies.

And being a deranged self-interested-but-knowing liar and being an insane disconnected-from-reality lunatic both reside in the region of "he will burn down the whole world without a second thought for any self benefit" so there's no reason to parse any of his verbal shitttery.

He's an existential danger to everyone, period, whether supposed friend or foe. Always. Every minute. Without exception.

[Alice Kramden]

17. Well said!

Totally agree

[True Blue American]

27. Delusional beyond repair.

[wishstar]

8. As a megalomaniacal Narcissist he is the ultimate trickster and manipulator

and he derives great satisfaction deliberately using others to his advantage playing games shamelessly while flinging out cruel sarcastic insults. For his entire life he has prided himself on benefiting financially from the constant lies and deceptions with few serious repercussions.

His persistence in lying over the 2020 election is simply his stubborn desire to remain the center of attention while continuing to rake in immense sums of money, not dementia.

But with aging his mental acuity is deteriorating causing more lapses such as the Biden/Obama/Clinton conflation which is natural for a narcissist who considers others as objects to be categorized and labeled rather than as unique individuals.

[Raven123]

9. Karem was right the first time. He lies and doesn't care.

If he is memory impaired, that is a recent development. It clearly is intermittent. He was savy enough to realize that he can’t win with just his base, and now has decided to attempt to appeal just an eensy weensy bit to reproductive rights advocates with his latest call for limited access to abortion. He watches the news and knows the power of this issue.

[PCIntern]

10. Sentence him to 20 years

Tying on coconuts to those swallows

[Roy Rolling]

11. Important Distinction

Is that a swallow carrying a coconut or flying solo?

[Hortensis]

12. Sadly, I don't see that he's much more impaired than before,

maybe slowing and worn down with 8 more years and 91 indictments weighing on him. His father was in his mid 80s when he came down with Alzheimer's.

BUT, the Republicans (and others) are very heavily running on the claim that President Biden's demented and too old. The Defendant's only 3 years younger. I'm wondering if more of this kind of thing could force to back away from hitting age and mental disability (if they could shut his insults up).

Of course we'll still have to keep a watch for claims that BOTH Biden and The Defendant are demented -- false-equivalencing our very competent and honorable president with a depraved, incompetent traitor. A dead giveaway of malignant intent, just like the claims that America deserved so much better than "tRump and Clinton" dragging the nation down.

[Wounded Bear]

30. Projection...every accusation is an confession...nt

[Hortensis]

37. Yep. If only the confessors could be helped to realize it.

I've read that most people behaving this way want to be good and are shocked and change when they learn what they're doing.

[RobinA]

13. There Is No Way

Trump will use any kind of diminished capacity argument. He's a stable genius. And extremely insecure. He cannot tolerate the thought of being wrong, even to save his life outside of prison. But it won't come to that.

[muriel_volestrangler]

14. He knows he's lying, and he doesn't care. He lies only to his advantage

Currently, he needs the votes of Republican voters with a more tenuous grip of reality than he has, so he lies the way they want him to. He does not lie in a way that would hurt his vote among them. That's how you can tell he's not demented.

He thinks he is entitled to lie, because he thinks he is superior to everyone else, and has the right to do what's best for himself. He also thinks that's the "best" for the USA, because he thinks the USA should be designed and run to benefit people like him.

[leftyladyfrommo]

15. He said that he is wired differently. And he doesn't

worry about going to prison.

I think he's smarter than he pretends to be but his method of burying all his crimes in layers of lawyers and stalling techniques has worked all his life.

He said once that he puts information on his tweets and then just enough crazy to keep people paying attention.

That doesn't sound like a stupid person. Whatever, he's a very dangerous person.

[TSExile]

19. Absolutely

A very dangerous and very EVIL person. He cannot underestimated.

[True Blue American]

35. Trump is wired differently

That is a fact but he also has a screw loose

[Beastly Boy]

16. Pleading insanity in a court will be the end of him as a charismatic leader of a populist movement.

He will never do it voluntarily. Fundraising through deception of his followers is the main source of capital now, and is the source of all his power. He must appear invulnerable to his base or else.

When he said he is not afraid of prison, he wasn't kidding. What he is afraid of is losing the power to get himself out of prison.

[tanyev]

18. If he uses it as a defense strategy, then it should also disqualify him from being the GOP nominee.

Should, but probably wouldn't.

[True Blue American]

26. There was an author on Joe this morning," When your whole party Goes Crazy."

[Maeve]

20. Almost choked on my coffee with #4

He does seem to be slipping a cog more often now than before.

[ms liberty]

21. African or European?

[jcgoldie]

23. I do think he lies so much that he doesn't know the difference

He's similar to an egoistic 4 year old, there seems to be no comprehension of objective truth outside of what he wants.

[True Blue American]

25. Wouldn't't even a 4 year old

Be embarrassed at being caught? I simply do not understand how a 77 year old could be so devoid of normal feelings.

[jcgoldie]

28. I always think of Piaget's stages of development

When Piaget discusses egocentrism he says in that preoperational stage of intelligence kids are just learning to understand that there is a world independent of themselves. He thinks they cannot understand that other people think in different ways to them or that events that take place are not always related to them. To me it is an accurate description of Trump.

[True Blue American]

32. That fits. Most are self centered .They drive me nuts.

Last edited Wed Sep 20, 2023, 10:19 AM - Edit history (1)

Which reminds me of Trump,” Mine, mine, mine. I have dealt with a few Narcissists, that will do anything to get their way.

Actually, I put passive/ aggressive people in that category

[Wounded Bear]

31. Toddlers have to learn what shame and embarrassment is...nt

[True Blue American]

24. Question

Do you think Trump feels any kind of shame, embarrassment or any kinds of feelings normal people have? Is he worried he might go to jail? What is in his mind?

[Kid Berwyn]

33. The answer from Rick Wilson:

“A putter, a cheeseburger, a porn video, and somebody else's credit card."

[True Blue American]

34. That fits!

[Silent3]

36. Trump is a kind of idiot savant, with the idiot part waxing and the savant part waning as he ages

He clearly has a talent for influencing some people. I can't imagine what it would be like to be that kind of person, but they exist, and there are are way too many of them in this world.

Whatever that talent is it just comes to Trump naturally, without any brain power having to be expended to get results. He just babbles out whatever he thinks is the most advantageous thing to say in a given moment, without regard to whether it contradicts whatever he said five days ago or five minutes ago, and without regard to whether it actually is advantageous in the world of people who don't fall under his spell.

While I'm sure Trump knowingly lies at times, I don't think he even has a very deep understanding of the concept of truth. He's probably capable of knowing he's lying and believing the lies himself at the same time, especially the lies that pump up his ego or put blame for a problem on anyone but himself.