SpyGate or Delusions?

The President continues to spin conspiracy theories with no evidence to support them. The latest, “greatest scandal of all time” suggested by the President is that President Obama (or Hillary, or FBI or whoever) had placed a “spy” in his campaign in an attempt to undermine his campaign. The recent briefing from every agency that may have had anything to say on the matter revealed there was no evidence of a “spy”. Many pundits believe this is an obvious effort to destroy our confidence in the justice system, and/or illegally obtain information on the evidence the Prosecutors have on him. This would be a serious assault on our Democracy, if true. I have a different theory.

I think that resident Trump is mentally ill and delusional when under stress. Consider a few of the more paranoid delusions in the long list of delusions he has voiced in the last decade:

1. President Obama was not an American citizen.
2. President Obama “bugged” Trump Tower.
3. His Inaugural Speech was the most attended of any Inauguration and the clouds parted and the sun came out when he began to speak.
4. There is a secret society in government called the “Deep State” trying to destroy his Presidency.
5. A secret group of FBI and CIA leaders conspired to throw the election to Hillary.
6. The FBI (under Republican leadership) conspired with Federal judges (appointed by Republican Presidents) to obtain illegal warrants against his campaign staff.

All of these delusions have been proven to be nothing more than delusions. He certainly meets every criteria for a personality disorder called “Malignant Narcissism”.  The symptoms include anti-social traits (such as refusing to pay legitimate bills), grandiosity, the need for power, a penchant for creating chaos and disorder to serve his needs, surrounding himself only with loyal sycophants, Using every occasion to self-promote, and pathological lying (believing his own lies) and an inability to admit any mistake. People who suffer from this mental illness decompensate when under a lot of pressure. One of the more pertinent symptoms of this illness is the use of projection as a defense mechanism. How often can we turn Trump’s accusations into something he actually has done (pay for play, abuse of women, etc.)?

Other Presidents have been disabled while in office. Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke, Ronald Reagan developed Dimentia… but no President has occupied the White House disabled by a mental illness or Personality Disorder, at least not this profound.

Whether Trump’s continuing delusions are a strategy to destroy our trust in the legal system and in government in general or just a natural result of his mental illness, the implications could be much more profound if we ever have a true crisis.