Why Did It Take So Long?

     Within a few weeks now of the presidential election, David Gergen on CNN finally said of President Donald Trump, “We are in the grip of a madman”.  Why did it take so long?  Why is it so meaningful?  The answer to the first question is simple, and to the second complex.

     It took so long because the Corona virus pandemic has been so overwhelming and the politicization of the science of the response has been so confusing to the public.  The irrationality of the leadership during this national tragedy been slow to emerge as an underlying contribution to the fact that after eight months of near, the virus is again out of control.  In the presence of such economic stress, the people can be excused for being slow in questioning the mental status of their leader.  Now it is out in the open and grounds for discussion. 

     As to why it is meaningful to understand this situation prior to the date of final voting is the fact that if elected, we the people will have to deal with the diagnosis of madness for a second term.  To understand the situation now is to understand that the president is and has been suffering from a mental disorder called malignant or grandiose narcissism for a long time.  Narcissism, according to the abstract noted below, identifies people who display grandiosity of behavior, overconfidence, risk taking, an inflated view of one’s abilities, and a sense of entitlement, low social empathy, impulsiveness, and a willingness and ability to use others to achieve their own self-interest. And why is that important?  It is important because one of the facts that science tells us is that this condition is characterized by chronic faulty decision-making. That’s right! Along with the other requirements for making a diagnosis, the ability for making rational and correct decisions is impaired.

     This recent information does not come from the psychiatric literature. No, it comes from the business world, specifically in a publication by the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, authored by Charles A. O’Reilly, Professor of Management and co-author Nicholas Hall, Associate Director of the Graduate School of Business Behavioral Lab.  The paper published August 14 of this year is entitled, “Grandiose Narcissists and Decision Making: Impulsive, Overconfident, and Skeptical of Experts—but Seldon in Doubt,” published on line by Elsevier Public Health Emergency Collection [a Public Health Emergency COVID 19 Initiative].  The abstract of this paper states that the condition results in “a high likelihood of the grandiose narcissist as one who is overly confident and convinced that they are special and better than others”.  In addition, after getting the wrong answer, “grandiose narcissists are more likely to blame others and remain self-confident in their judgment.” 

      The paper goes on to conclude that, “the grandiose narcissist is convinced that they are specially more creative, competent and intelligent”: that, “they are more likely to manipulate others even lying, cheating, and stealing”: and, “Research has shown that because they often feel that they are not being recognized as superior, grandiose narcissists often respond with hostility.  In addition, “grandiose or malignant narcissists have been shown to make choices more quickly than non-narcissists and that this behavior can provide short-term benefits but lead to negative long-term outcomes.  Finally, Professor O’Reilly’s paper adds that New York Times journalists have noted Trump’s profound need for personal praise, the propensity to blame others, the penchant for rewriting history, the lack of human empathy, the distortion of facts, and the impatience with scrutiny or criticism, but in my opinion, it doesn’t seem to have acquired much traction.

      Yes, Mr. Gergen, Donald Trump is a madman-- specifically a sick grandiose narcissist who should not be President of the United States or any other organization.  How crazy and ironic it is that it has taken science from a business school, not a medical school to clear the air.