The first time I’ve disagreed with Tony Schwartz about what makes Trump tick and what he’ll do...
A drowning Trump will indeed rage but it’ll primarily be directed at perceived enemies... and that may pave the way for a softer landing than most expect.
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A drowning Trump will indeed rage but it’ll primarily be directed at perceived enemies... and that may pave the way for a softer landing than most expect.
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Trump, like all malignant narcissists, tends to a garden of grievances and slights that he keeps alive until avenged.
He’s got a million people he could scapegoat and blame for his current troubles.
The biggest target is the media though.
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He’s got a million people he could scapegoat and blame for his current troubles.
The biggest target is the media though.
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In his mind, the media has not only done him wrong, they make it impossible for him to rehab the damage done to his image - by them.
He thinks he saved CNN from ruin, made media bosses rich, and got shanked instead of thanked.
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He thinks he saved CNN from ruin, made media bosses rich, and got shanked instead of thanked.
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A narcissist under the crushing stress of an inescapable public humiliation often needs only a face-saving excuse to flee.
The excuse doesn’t have to be believable to others.
It just needs to make the narc feel like they have a defensible reason for running away.
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The excuse doesn’t have to be believable to others.
It just needs to make the narc feel like they have a defensible reason for running away.
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If that face-saving excuse portrays the narc as a noble, triumphant victim rising above adversity or vanquishing some unjust wrong, my lord, that’s the holy grail.
Apply that now to the media...
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Apply that now to the media...
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Trump could quite easily insist that his presidency has been a tremendous success undermined only by a mainstream media with a near monopoly on what is said about him.
He could allege that America has been hurt by the lack of a media platform able to see his greatness.
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He could allege that America has been hurt by the lack of a media platform able to see his greatness.
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It is not a stretch at all that Trump might exit by:
1) Raging against the supposed enemies who “hurt the American people by opposing him”; and
2) Announcing that he, his ex-Fox News sidekick, Bill Shine, et al, are going to build the greatest media company ever! Trump TV!
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1) Raging against the supposed enemies who “hurt the American people by opposing him”; and
2) Announcing that he, his ex-Fox News sidekick, Bill Shine, et al, are going to build the greatest media company ever! Trump TV!
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The worse the pressure from the walls closing in; the more attractive those face-saving ripcords get to a narc.
If Roger Ailes were still alive, we’d already be hearing rumblings about talks for a Trump TV being in the works.
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If Roger Ailes were still alive, we’d already be hearing rumblings about talks for a Trump TV being in the works.
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Right now, I’d lay the odds of this being the specific exit at 5-to-1.
If Fox News’ coverage becomes less fully protective of Trump as his scandals unfold, knock that down to 3-to-1.
If he turns on Fox News, drop it to 2-to-1.
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If Fox News’ coverage becomes less fully protective of Trump as his scandals unfold, knock that down to 3-to-1.
If he turns on Fox News, drop it to 2-to-1.
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I’ve said from the get-go (in my pinned thread, etc.) that the Act IV of this vulgar Macbeth will see Babyfingers isolated and imploding as Birnam Wood approaches Dunsinane...
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...and Act V would feature a defeated Trump attempting to ride out of the castle as Robert “MacDuff” Mueller waits outside the walls to haul him away to face consequences.
Translation: Trump quits. He isn’t thrown out. But after quitting, is dragged away anyway.
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Translation: Trump quits. He isn’t thrown out. But after quitting, is dragged away anyway.
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