Happy 78th birthday, Donald. Take it from one old guy to another: Age is just a number.
This election, however, is a choice. pic.twitter.com/8KssiJuJwQ
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 14, 2024
Excellent question from @RadioFreeTom: "Why hasn’t there been more sustained and serious attention paid to Trump’s emotional state?" Not only is he unstable, but the people who once managed his "cognitive and emotional issues are gone, never to return."🎁https://t.co/uMix9jZQlk
— Jill Lawrence (@JillDLawrence) June 13, 2024
… For too long, Trump has gotten away with pretending that his emotional issues are just part of some offbeat New York charm or an expression of his enthusiasm for public performance. But Trump is obviously unfit—and something is profoundly wrong with a political environment in which he can now say almost anything, no matter how weird, and his comments will get a couple of days of coverage and then a shrug, as if to say: Another day, another Trump rant about sharks…
… In Las Vegas on Sunday, Trump went off-script—I have to assume that no competent speechwriter would have drafted this—and riffed on the important question of how to electrocute a shark while one attacks. He had been talking, he claims, to someone about electric boats: “I say, ‘What would happen if the boat sank from its weight and you’re in the boat, and you have this tremendously powerful battery, and the battery’s now underwater, and there’s a shark that’s approximately 10 yards over there?’”…
Why hasn’t there been more sustained and serious attention paid to Trump’s emotional state?
First, Trump’s target audience is used to him. Watch the silence that descends over the crowds at such moments; when Trump wanders off into the recesses of his own mind, they chit-chat or check their phones or look around, waiting for him to come back and offer them an applause line. For them, it’s all just part of the show.
Second, Trump’s staff tries to put just enough policy fiber into Trump’s nutty verbal soufflés that they can always sell a talking point later, as if his off-ramps from reality are merely tiny bumps in otherwise sensible speeches. Trump himself occasionally seems surprised when these policy nuggets pop up in a speech; when reading the teleprompter, he sometimes adds comments such as “so true, so true,” perhaps because he’s encountering someone else’s words for the first time and agreeing with them. Thus, they will later claim that questions about sharks or long-dead uncles are just bad-faith distractions from substance. (These are the same Republicans who claim that every verbal stumble from Joe Biden indicates full-blown dementia.)
Third, and perhaps most concerning in terms of public discussion, many people in the media have fallen under the spell of the Jedi hand-waves from Trump and his people that none of this is as disturbing and weird as it sounds. The refs have been worked: A significant segment of the media—and even the Democratic Party—has bought into a Republican narrative that asking whether Trump is mentally unstable is somehow biased and elitist, the kind of thing that could only occur to Beltway mandarins who don’t understand how the candidate talks to normal people…
It is long past time for anyone who isn’t in the Trump base to admit, and to keep talking about, something that has been obvious for years: Donald Trump is unstable. Some of these problems were evident when he first ran, and we now know from revelations by many of his former staff that his problems processing information and staying tethered to reality are not part of some hammy act.
Worse, the people who once managed Trump’s cognitive and emotional issues are gone, never to return. A second Trump White House will be staffed with the bottom of the barrel—the opportunists and hangers-on willing to work for a reprehensible man. His Oval Office will be empty of responsible and experienced public servants if the day comes when someone has to explain to him why war might be about to erupt on the Korean peninsula or why the Russian or Chinese nuclear forces have gone on alert, and he starts talking about frying sharks with boat batteries.
The 45th president is deeply unwell. It is long past time for Americans, including those in public life, to recognize his inability to serve as the 47th.
“Biden, who is old, at least makes sense. Trump, who also is old, rants like someone you’d cross the street to avoid.” @eugene_robinson on the candidates’ age and coherence. https://t.co/NEZI3aoGEY
— Paul Farhi (@farhip) June 11, 2024
… We in the media have failed by becoming inured to Trump’s verbal incontinence — not just the rapid-fire lies and revenge-seeking threats, but also the frightening glimpses into a mind that is, evidently, unwell. In 2016, Trump said outrageous things at his campaign rallies to be entertaining. In 2024, his tangents raise serious questions about his mental fitness….
The White House press corps would be in wolf pack mode if Biden were in the middle of a speech and suddenly veered into gibberish about boats and sharks. There would be front-page stories questioning whether the president, at 81, was suffering from dementia; and the op-ed pages would be filled with thumb-suckers about whether Vice President Harris and the Cabinet should invoke the 25th Amendment. House Republicans would already have scheduled hearings on Biden’s mental condition and demanded he take a cognitive test…
Also during the Las Vegas speech, Trump tried to deny the allegation by one of his White House chiefs of staff, retired Marine Gen. John F. Kelly, that he refused in 2018 to visit an American military cemetery in France, saying it was filled with “suckers” and “losers.” Trump told the crowd on Sunday that “only a psycho or a crazy person or a very stupid person” would say such a thing while “I’m standing there with generals and military people in a cemetery.”
But he wasn’t “standing there” with anybody. He never went to the cemetery.
Except in his mind, perhaps, which is a much bigger problem than Biden fumbling a name or garbling a sentence.
LMAO a must listen
Would you declassify the 9/11 files?
“Yes.”Would you declassify the JFK files?
“Yes.”Would you declassify the Epstein files?
“Yeah, uh, I think that less so because you don’t want to affect people’s lives…” https://t.co/5u3r9rJPul— Toby Muresianu ???? (@tobyhardtospell) June 6, 2024
Brutal report from @andrewrsorkin on Trump's visit with CEOs yesterday:
"CEOs who said that he was remarkably meandering, could not keep a straight thought, was all over the map."
CEOs who walked in as soft Trump supporters walked out startled by him pic.twitter.com/m68PeT52ez
— James Singer (@Jemsinger) June 14, 2024
J. Arthur Crank
Christ, what an asshole!
Also too: there are classified Epstein files? Who is in possession of these files?
Chet Murthy
@J. Arthur Crank: Ehh, these are Fox News droids. I’m assuming they meant the evidence collected during the Epstein investigation, that hasn’t been made public (b/c rich perverts have been carpet-bombing courthouses with lawyers).
anitamargarita
Re the electric boat thing, I guess that he heard about McConnel’s sister-in-law drowning in her Tesla, and blended that with his shark obsesion
Leto
I have difficulty with this because it’s just so fucking obvious, and I feel like it should be obvious to anyone with two functioning brain cells. On top of that, you have the majority of the media who either downplay his cottage cheese brain, try to both sides it, or just don’t cover it at all. I don’t know how to fix the media part, but I’ll simply keep telling everyone I meet that the man is a walking sack of shit who in an actual functioning society wouldn’t be trusted with a spork and pudding cup.
Urza
Why ask about declassifying anything. If he cared about doing it he already had the chance, and chose not to. Only reason to do it in the future is distractions from his latest impeachment worthy scandal. (Yes that does mean he might consider releasing these documents daily)
Sister Inspired Revolver of Freedom
He has Long Covid complete with the cognitive symptoms. He’s had it for years, it’s getting worse & I can’t believe he’s still the GOP presidential candidate. This is insane!
piratedan
I guess for me the most insulting bit about all of this is that our media treats him as if he’s a candidate who deserves to be heard. Even after witnessing his last term of office, seeing the charges laid against him, his attempts to overthrow the election, his use of outside agencies to win an election, his behavior with women and the complete contempt of the law and the Media that does not fawn over him. That’s not even accounting for the fact that he appears to be driven solely upon revenge and otherwise is a drooling incoherent mess that can barely string together two consecutive coherent sentences, much less thoughts.
he’s a threat because so few stand up to him.
Randal Sexton
Tim ‘Apple’ Cook was at this meeting ? and I guess Dimon was there too. wtf. 80 CEOs. Feh.
Chet Murthy
@Sister Inspired Revolver of Freedom: From your lips to the FSM’s tender orecchiete!
West of the Rockies
That last vid was not really useful. It’s conclusion is simply that Trump would not be better than Biden.
No, tech bro dude, he’d be catastrophically worse!
Chet Murthy
@West of the Rockies: And the simple fact is, those CEOs are gonna come home to TCFG, ‘cos they want their tax cuts. Hell, they at least want the ones they got from TCFG last time (TCJA) to not expire! They ain’t walkin’ away from TCFG, unless the G(r)OP ditches the bastard.
Quadrillipede
So… Is ready for close up? Is close enough now? 😽😵💫🥴🤢🤮
Steeplejack
@J. Arthur Crank:
Not “classified,” but previously sealed. This story is from January: “The newly unsealed Jeffrey Epstein documents have Donald Trump’s name all over them. He had been secretly disguised as ‘Doe 174.’” But I saw it only two days ago. Kind of weird that it hasn’t been covered very much (that I have seen).
J. Arthur Crank
@Steeplejack: Thanks. This all seems so fucked up in so many ways, like a presidential candidate being asked to release files connected to a court case, or that presidential candidate himself being connected to several court cases, etc.
eclare
@anitamargarita:
That could be, I hadn’t thought of that.
eclare
@piratedan:
I know, Nancy Pelosi can’t do it all.
lgerard
Equally concerning is his volcanic temper eruptions. There was a report the other day that he lambasted speaker Moses with a barrage of profanities in urging him to somehow repeal his collection of convictions.
That is not normal and there is not enough reporting on this feature of his vile personality
eclare
@Chet Murthy:
You’d think at least a few of these MOTU CEO’s would realize that Putin marching through Europe would destabilize the world economy and be bad for bidness. But nope. It’s all tax cuts.
Chet Murthy
@eclare: they probably think they can come to an accommodation with him. In this they are wrong, just like some of the German CEOs who thought that about Hitler.
NotMax
@Chet Murthy
Ford and GM had no such hesitancy about cooperating with Hitler’s Germany.
mrmoshpotato
Can we just throw the entire god-damned GOP into the Sun instead?
cain
@mrmoshpotato: theyd turn it into a white dwarf or black hole prematurely.
piratedan
@mrmoshpotato: it would be cheaper to put ’em on an empty cargo ship and send them to Putin, in Murmansk.
hitchhiker
In the meantime, the press coverage on Earth Two has a whole lot of people convinced that Joe Biden is about to drop out because he’s seen that he can’t win against the powerhouse that is the crabby old felon. They’re speculating feverishly about possible replacements … Michelle Obama is a favorite.
Earth Two citizens think that the crabby old felon won in 2020, and when he loses in a few months they’re going to be certain that the election was rigged again, which I guess is the point of getting them to believe that Joe is doddering around begging to be allowed to quit now.
I’m starting to wonder how the felon will wriggle out of that June 27 debate date. I don’t think he can risk it.
NotMax
@hitchhiker
“I agreed to June 27. I never said 2024.”
Tony Jay
@hitchhiker:
Demand, starting June 20th, that Biden either unequivocally rule out pardoning Hunter or allowing him to challenge his conviction as either would be ‘an unconscionable and unconstitutional violation of the justice system’. Have MAGOP minions pound the demand all week as a Village-friendly deflection from any other question thrown at them.
On June 26th hold an exclusive Press Conference for the news media to announce that Biden’s refusal to ‘play by the standard rules’ and his criminal insistence on ‘playing favourites with American justice’ leave him with no option but to reject the Administration’s pleas for a no-doubt rigged face to face debate to concentrate on his campaigning to Make America Great Again!
Catnip for MAGATs and Villagers alike.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
Yes, this, Trump in his prime was a serial screw up and he’s been a running gag in American culture since the ’90s, yet somehow huge numbers of people take him seriously because there is an “R” after his name.
Quaker in a Basement
@Tony Jay:
I don’t understand. How would such a thing even be possible? Every defendant has the right to file for an appeal. They might as well ask for Biden to promise everyone a pony
Ruling out a pardon? Biden has already done that. Now if Trump should win in November and lame duck Biden is holding the pardon pen, all bets are off.
Bruce K in ATH-GR
@Quaker in a Basement: I think Tony Jay’s point is that TFG is going to demand something ridiculous and impossible for Biden to comply with, and use that as his excuse to skip whatever debate that is.
Tony Jay
@Quaker in a Basement:
Easy. Do it by lying and conflating wildly different things into a ‘scandalous’ dollop of victimitude and faux pearl-clutching for the delectation of those who like that kind of thing.
This is Stench and his Hench Party we’re talking about here. As far as they’re concerned Presidents can and should do whatever the fuck they like to protect and reward anyone they want – as long as the President is Republican. Whining about Biden not doing something illegal and outside his remit is absolutely in character for them.
ETA – Or what Bruce K said.
Odie Hugh Manatee
@piratedan:
Big media anxiously waiting for something to attack Biden over while completely ignoring story after story about shit that the convicted felon and his party does makes it very clear that our country has the best media that money can buy. Our big media is all about keeping the tax cut guys in charge because their owners want it that way. This is not going to change as long as the Democrats insist on making the lives of the peasants better.
Wealthy people do not want to help peasants do better, that costs money that they need to keep for themselves! Onward Republicans!!
David 🌈 ☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch
@NotMax:
I
B
M
David 🌈 ☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch
Dump is a creation of the media.
In spite of all evidence to the contrary they spent 50 years creating and amplifying the myth that he was a great self made businessman.
And then, 40 years ago, the media began brainwashing the public into thinking the country should be run like a business.
They’ll never will admit their culpability. It’s no different than their refusal to accept their responsibility for lying the country into a quagmire in Iraq.
ColoradoGuy
Highly recommend the Shrinking Trump series on Youtube. Two psychologists are monitoring his week-by-week deterioration. This week’s guest has a particularly harrowing description of what he went through as he grew up.
https://www.youtube.com/live/VaCq9WrmObs?si=C7qAQQg9IY6FPbb5
MagdaInBlack
@ColoradoGuy: Thank you. Bookmarked to watch later, when my brain an tolerate the sound of human voices.
JPL
@J. Arthur Crank: Maybe trump has them. I assume that Barr took custody, but who knows what happened after Barr jumped ship.
JPL
@Steeplejack: Thanks
Baud
@lgerard:
Where’sI’m your Messiah now!NotMax
@Baud
Putting the mess into messiah.
waspuppet
He’s been doing that since about 2018. I’m glad someone (else) finally noticed.
The next thing everyone should be made aware of (but won’t)—reporters literally begging for something they can put into their stories to make Trump seem like an even sort-of normal human being:
https://x.com/emma_dumain/status/1801328505260552370
NorthLeft
Perhaps this has already been noted by someone else, but isn’t it obvious that when Trump mentions talking to “somebody” he is actually referring to a voice inside his own head?
More than a little worrying, no?
O. Felix Culpa
@NorthLeft: It’s a lot worrying, yes. All the more reason to work our asses off to make sure that Biden wins and we regain the House and retain the Senate.
Betty
@NorthLeft: That’s what the psychologists mentioned above believe as well.
different-church-lady
I just looked at the AP style guide and it says “brutal” is a synonym for “TRIUMPHANT!”
RevRick
@Chet Murthy: If I were a Fortune 500 executive, I would think long and hard about Trump in the White House. Keeping the tax cuts would be great for them, but his 130% tariff proposal would be an absolute disaster.
Most assume that it would be hugely inflationary, more than doubling the price of imported goods, but that assumes people would continue buying regardless of the price. What is more likely is that people would postpone or even forgo entirely purchasing said goods. And that would set off a vicious cycle of economic contraction.
It would lead to immediate massive layoffs in retail, shipping and business services, with the inevitable spillover into the financial sector as commercial loans go into default. From there, the contagion would spread due to the contracting consumer spending. And the notion that American manufacturers could quickly take up the slack is delusional, especially considering how much American companies are dependent on imported raw materials and parts. And that’s in the cases where it’s theoretically possible to ramp up production.
But explaining all this to an economically illiterate public is well nigh impossible.
Ruckus
Why hasn’t there been more sustained and serious attention paid to Trump’s emotional state?
Likely because it’s like a skyscraper completely engulfed in fire. Any and every one can see it. Most are likely normally worried about it, because it’s bad, really can’t be saved, could cause extreme damage within a wide range and many people could/will likely die. And the people that do not understand that will likely never understand, no matter how well or how often it’s explained. Some people just like fire.
Ruckus
@NorthLeft:
It’s very likely not one voice. We all have varying sides to our personalities. Now most of us recognize the good sides and stifle the bad, the stupid, the dangerous, because we are normal. ShitForBrains is not normal in any way, shape or form. Hasn’t been for a lot of decades. But while normal can go bonkers, it most often does not. SFB, as I stated is not and never has been normal. He is abnormal and always has been and not abnormal in any good way, only in bad, shitty, horrible ways. But he’s gone around the bend, lost all the even possibilities of in anyway normal. And he’s an age where when that happens, it is a ONE way street. It will never get better, only worse. Far worse. And what is astounding is that a percentage of his followers will never see/understand this. Because like him, they are too far gone to ever find reverse, or even the brakes.
Geoduck
Note that the CEOs were “startled” by the Shaitgibbon’s behavior. I assume some rich people get more accurate news than the plebes on the street, but I bet a lot of them just wallow in the same toxic stew as the rest of us, and thus had no idea how much he’s deteriorated.