Donald Trump has had a terrible few weeks, largely self-inflicted, as I noted here. But as he gets less popular and gets sterner rebukes from Republican endorsers, he’s actually getting more scattered in his speeches, darker and more apocalyptic in his imagery. This afternoon he compared America to a terminally ill patient and a country that would seem be like Venezuela. Check out these quotes.
The pivot appears to have finally arrived … but it’s toward a crazier, more fire and brimstone Trump.
TPM Reader JA sends in the following passage from Wikipedia in response to my recent discussion of narcissistic injury …
Kohut explored a wide range of rage experiences in his seminal article ‘Thoughts on Narcissism and Narcissistic Rage’ (1972).[17] He considered narcissistic rage as one major form among many, contrasting it especially with mature aggression.[18] Because the very structure of the self itself is weakened in the narcissist, their rage cannot flower into real assertiveness;[19] and they are left instead prone to oversensitivity to perceived or imagined narcissistic injuries resulting in narcissistic rage.[20]
Less than a week after America buried its most prominent Muslim, Donald Trump claimed that “assimilation” by American Muslims is “close to nonexistent.” Here’s what the experts say.
I was online last night when I saw someone say, ‘Just think how differently this would be going if Rubes or Kasich were the nominee.’ I actually think Clinton would be doing much better in those contests than a lot of people realize. But the counter-factual jarred me into a sudden realization: It’s not just that Trump isn’t doing well. He’s barely running a campaign at all.
The award for most implausible effort by a politician to distance himself from Trump goes to … the co-chair of Trump’s own House Leadership Committee.
Human Rights Campaign reacting to conservatives suddenly knowing what’s best for da gays: “This is just ridiculous, and appalling, and completely and totally insincere.”
I noted earlier this week that Donald Trump is uniquely reliant on strong poll numbers. Every candidate is dependent on good poll numbers for morale, fundraising and more. But Trump’s platform isn’t abolishing Obamacare or lowering taxes or kicking more ass in the Middle East. His platform is “winning.” So if he’s clearly not winning, it’s uniquely debilitating. But there’s another way to understand this phenomenon, a broader framework for understanding Trump’s current rough patch. It is the inherent turbulence faced by a bullshit-based candidate making first contact with an at least loosely reality-based world.
It’s hard not to fixate on Donald Trump’s string of galactic unforced errors on the campaign trail. But there’s a whole different story playing out on the campaign mechanics front – and one that has Republicans rightly worried. According to this new story out from AP, the Trump campaign estimates that it currently has a nationwide field staff of 30 people. 30. This in a country with 50 states.
To be clear: I don’t think this is remotely likely. But I will note that the betting markets seem to be having their first real doubts – small but numerically perceptible – that Trump will even be the Republican nominee.