When Republicans tell Democrats to stop calling Trump a threat to democracy you know they're afraid, therefore they should keep doing this, by Hal Brown, MSW

 

When I saw the article 

After Assassination Attempt, Republicans Say It’s Out Of Bounds To Call Donald Trump A Threat To Democracy

in HUFFPOST you can see my reaction above. 

I recommend that Biden and his campaign team push the campaign pause button until a few days after the Republican convention to let Trump's "I was but for the grace of God almost a martyr" blitz run it's course. This will seem like the classy thing to do. After all, it is Democrats that want to portray themselves as having empathy, which of course they do.

In reality since so much attention will be foucsed on the convention that it will be hard to compete with their noise machine even with a few well-placed powerful ads about Trump being a threat to democracy. In addtion, holding back the ad buys will save Democrats some money. 

What the Republicans are now revealing is that it may not be issues like abortion that they are most afraid Biden and other Democrats running for office will focus on. It is that they are afraid of the truth sinking in with voters that Trump really does want to be a dictator and, notably, that this is a very bad thing.

Until now it appeared that portraying Trump as someone intent on becoming a dictator on day one, and for those who think he's immortal, forever after, wasn't hitting home with undecided sane voters. We knew that his most ardent supporters from the cultists at rallies who you know by looking at them would be thrilled to have him rule with power unfettered by the pesky Constitution...

... to those in The Heritage Foundation who wrote Project 2025 from their opulent Massachusetts Avenue office in Washington (below) wants Trump to be a dictator. 

What we didn't know was that the GOP mucky-mucks were actually worried about the Democrats warning the country about this. Now we know they are. By eschewing positive ads about all the good things Biden had done they must with forceful and let's hope formidable focus describe the damage, make the the destruction, to democracy his presidency would mean. The Democrats will be hitting Trump where it hurts him the most. Go figure! Many of us, myself included, thought this wouldn't matter.

The Democrats shouldn't pay attention to those who are like the editorial board of The Washington Post who just published Opinion Turn down the heat, let in the light. One, the Republicans aren't go to "turn down the heat" and more importantly the Democrats need to turn up the heat.

The Opinion piece concludes with:

Perhaps the assassin’s failure was providential, as so many have suggested. Mr. Trump’s murder could have plunged the United States into political darkness. Now all Americans have been given a chance to turn toward the light.

Biden is trying to do just that not only because it is politically wise at this time but also because he has two sides, the combative Dark Brandon and the one that exudes sincere empathy. But the editors at the Post who wrote the above don't understand the forces of rage and evil normalized by Trump and his minions. If they believe Americans writ large can turn to the light they have to be delusional. 

Biden needs to unleash his Dark Brandon:

It is possible that the Trump camp has internal polling which shows that it will matter if Biden goes full-on Dark Brandon. 

Forget the fact that it is Trump and his allies who have said, hell, shouted, that it was the Democrats who were turning the country into a dictatorship calling them a mishmash of names from what they thought would be fright inducing terms from facists to communists. We know what Trump wants the country to be. 

I predict that before too long a signifcant number of iffy Trump supporters will be hit with the truth about what he wants for the country. They won't buy the comparison between this Trump "some Iwo Jima sh*t" photo posted on X by Chris LaCivita,  a senior advisor to Trump's campaign....

and the real one...

It shouldn't need to be pointed out that the Marines risked thier lives, and 6,200 of their compatriots died, so they could plant this flag on the top of Mount Suribachi. Trump didn't knowingly risk his life when he walked to the podium at a Butler, Pennsylvania rally. Butler County does have some hills but none of them are occupied by enemy soldiers.

You can read this and previous blogs on two websites and on Substack. One may look better than the other because of how the platforms present the page.

Read on the WordPress Stressline.org (you can subscrbe to this on the upper left)

or….

Read on the Google Blogger platform HalBrown.org This version has a Disquis comment section which makes it easy to post links and images.

or… Hal’s Substack where you can sing up to get an email when I post a new blog.

The country was literally inches away from having a historic "where were you when JFK was shot?" moment, by Hal Brown, MSW

 BLOODIED TRUMP STANDS TALL, PUMPS FIST: Fox News

Above is from the Fox News website

I took this the evening of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump at Five Spice, the best restaurant in Lake Oswego, Oregon where my partner and I went for dinner with friends. It is a liberal city, but the bartenders apparently like to watch Fox News. Last night the chyron on Fox News tells us how the story will be played on Trump friendly media: BLOODIED TRUMP STANDS TALL, PUMPS FIST.

Those old enough to remember when John F. Kennedy was shot occasionally when talking about the event ask each other to describe where they were when it happened. I was an undergraduate in the grill of the student union when someone came in and announced that Kennedy had been shot. Kennedy, like Trump, was beloved by half the country.

Had the bullet which whizzed by Trump's head, possibly one across his check and another clipping his ear been inches, or centimeters, to the right the results obviously could have been lethal. 

Trump for his part walked the walk of the fearless warrior he believes he is and portrays himself as being to his fans. Within seconds of being shot he raised his fist and shouted "fight, fight, fight."

I begrudgingly give him credit for realizing within moments that he was living a made for TV historic moment and that what he did could assure he could now effortlessly coast into the White House. Immediately he realzed that the eyes of the nation were on him and instead of making sure that he wasn't exposing himself to more bullets - no doubt to the horror of the Secret Service - he stood tall and gave the world what was (no pun intended) the money shot. 

I can see one of the photos of him doing this ending up on posters and t-shirts with the word "fight" under it.

I doubt that Trump ever believed in God and that surviving this will change that though as the brilliant self-promoter he is wrote the following on Truth Social this morning:

"Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers yesterday, as it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening," Trump wrote on Truth Social. 

"We will FEAR NOT, but instead remain resilient in our Faith and Defiant in the face of Wickedness. Our love goes out to the other victims and their families. We pray for the recovery of those who were wounded, and hold in our hearts the memory of the citizen who was so horribly killed.

"In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand United, and show our True Character as Americans, remaining Strong and Determined, and not allowing Evil to Win. I truly love our Country, and love you all, and look forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin." 

Bad news for Democrats is that early reporting indicated that the shooter, while a registered, Republican made a $15 donation to Progressive Turnout Project, a Chicago-based political action committee that supports Democrat candidates for public office and claims to advocate for "key Democratic constituencies: young people, minorities and low-income people."

There are many photos of Trump from the shooting while show his to be more human:

I doubt any photos like these will be used by the Trump campaign. I expect they will use one like the three on the top of this page.

This is what pollster Frank Luntz posted on X:

In the end, voters will settle down and return to their candidate of choice. The people who move towards Trump out of sympathy will probably move back.

But what happened in PA will definitely impact the final vote, guaranteeing that every Trump voter will actually vote. Biden, or any other candidate the Democrats put up, will not have the same participation certainty.

That participation gap is worth at least 1% and as much as 2%. And because it happened in Pennsylvania, the impact will be highest in Pennsylvania.

This doesn’t guarantee that Trump flips Pennsylvania. But the long and winding road for Joe Biden just became even longer and windier.

Just as what happened to George Floyd had a lasting impact on tens of millions of Americans, the shooting of Donald Trump will be significantly consequential in a way the shooter never intended.

 

What Luntz doesn't address is how much money this will probably bring in to his campaign.

Grifters are already using one of the images to make money. This one is for sale for $29.99. 

Here's more:

Now it is almost too obvious for me to write what I think many Democrats are thinking. This is that we might as well just stop campaigning and let Trump declare himself the winner.

You can read this and previous blogs on two websites and on Substack. One may look better than the other because of how the platforms present the page.

Read on the WordPress Stressline.org (you can subscrbe to this on the upper left)

or….

Read on the Google Blogger platform HalBrown.org This version has a Disquis comment section which makes it easy to post links and images.

or… Hal’s Substack where you can sing up to get an email when I post a new blog.

Trumps "Truth" posts add up to the only psychological test you need to diagnose Donald Trump as a dangerous maniac. All the leaders of our allies need to do to be terrifed that he'll be the next president is to read them, by Hal Brown, MSW

In 2017 Dr. John Gartner, the founder of Duty to Warn, wrote 

All I Ever Wanted to Know about Donald Trump I Learned From His Tweets: A Psychological Exploration of the President 

Currently his tweets on what was then called Twitter have been replaced by what he wants to call "truths" (thankfully not in the dictionary like "tweet" is) on Truth Social. Therefore, if one was to write an updated book the title would have to be changed. 

In 2019 The New York Times (subscription) published 

How Trump Reshaped the Presidency in Over 11,000 Tweets

This article was co-authored by Trump's on again off again pal Maggie Haberman and five other Times writers. It begins:

When Mr. Trump entered office, Twitter was a political tool that had helped get him elected and a digital howitzer that he relished firing. In the years since, he has fully integrated Twitter into the very fabric of his administration, reshaping the nature of the presidency and presidential power.

After Turkey invaded northern Syria this past month, he crafted his response not only in White House meetings but also in a series of contradictory tweets. This summer, he announced increased tariffs on $300 billion worth of Chinese goods, using a tweet to deepen tensions between the two countries. And in March, Mr. Trump cast aside more than 50 years of American policy, tweeting his recognition of Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan Heights. He openly delighted in the reaction he provoked.

“Boom. I press it,” Mr. Trump recalled months later at a White House conference attended by conservative social media personalities, “and, within two seconds, ‘We have breaking news.’”

Flash forward to when Trump lost the election. Trump's tweets, and then his truths, gave us a deeper insight into how his mind functioned. It hasn't been pretty.

He used these to send personal vicious messages to individuals but also to the country since he knew the more inflamatory ones would be shared in the media. This is from the Times article:

“Boom. I press it,” Mr. Trump recalled months later at a White House conference attended by conservative social media personalities, “and, within two seconds, ‘We have breaking news.’”

Whether or not the leaders of our allies or our enemies (some of whom may very well have secret channels to communicate with him) are following what Trump says at his rallies, it's reasonable to assume that they are people with subscriptions to Truth Social. A message to us is also a message to them.

I don't know if Trump cares that leaders and residents in other countries would be reading these too and would be wondering what would happen if this unhinged revenge fueled lunatic became president again. Perhaps, given that he's a malignant narcissist, he wants them to be terrified of him. He wants to be feared. It makes him feel powerful. This is the nature of the beast.

Our allies may see Trump as a clown, but they also see him as a dangerous clown:

Above: AI Generated image

Can you imagine what leaders of NATO thought when they heard that told a rally crowd that he “didn’t even know” much about NATO before he became president — but claimed he figured it out fast. (More from the rally speech on bottom of page). Trump was bragging about what a fast learner he was when he said this when if fact he was revealing what an ignorant dolt he was.

Obviously Trump thinks that video clips of his swinging a golf club are impressive or he wouldn't post them (someone shares the Truth Social posts on X):

Between what comes through Trump's brain and out of his mouth and what pops into his mind and onto Truth Social via his stubby fingers leaders of the world's democracies are no doubt dreading the possiblity he'll become president again.

From the rally speech:

Today he’s (Biden) with the people from NATO and these people show up. I know very well every one of them. They’re very smart. They’re at the top of their game, and then they’re saying, “What the hell is with this guy? We know we can’t figure out –”

You know I saved NADDO [sic] because when I went down — hey, Barack Hussein Obama, has anyone ever heard of him?

He would go, he would go and, you know, go to wherever the holding had a meeting and he’d make a nice speech and Bush would go and make a nice speech and he would leave, in all fairness. Bush, Bush!

But he makes a nice speech and they’re all going to make speeches, and then they wouldn’t even stay there a day.

I went and didn’t make a nice speech. I said, what the hell are you doing? Nobody’s paying, nobody was paying.

And I didn’t want to be obnoxious because I felt it was the first time I’d ever done this. And what? I didn’t even know what the hell NATO was too much before, but it didn’t take me long to figure it out. Like about two minutes.

And the first thing I figured out was they weren’t paying. We were paying. We were paying almost fully for, you know, and and I said, that’s unfair, but I didn’t want to make a big mess.

And I was president in — for about 15 minutes. And I didn’t want you to know go after NATO as my first —

But, but six months later, I went back to the second meeting and I said, you know what? You’re not paying your bills. You got to pay your bills. So somebody stood up from from one of the countries, 28 countries, and only seven were paying what they should be paying. 28 countries, think of that. And these countries now we added a couple but 28 countries. And they said, sir, could I ask you? I said, “you have to pay your bills.”

They said, “Sir, may I ask you a question. If we don’t pay your bills, will you protect us from Russia?”

I said, “You mean you’re delinquent?”

They said, “Yes, we’re delinquent. Let’s say we’re delinquent, will you protect us?”

I said, “No, I will not protect you from Russia.”

The money came in by the billions!

You can read this and previous blogs on two websites and on Substack. One may look better than the other because of how the platforms present the page.

Read on the WordPress Stressline.org (you can subscrbe to this on the upper left)

or….

Read on the Google Blogger platform HalBrown.org This version has a Disquis comment section which makes it easy to post links and images.

or… Hal’s Substack where you can sing up to get an email when I post a new blog.

Biden (or whoever runs) should call Trump a malignant narcissist, by Hal Brown, MSW

 

Anyone who reads Salon knows what malignant narcissism is thanks to columnist Chauncey DeVega. He has interviewed many mental health experts on the subject. Readers of Salon know that the diagnosis fits Trump like a custom made glove. Unfortunately the general public doesn't know that Trump has this dangerous psychopatholgy. That needs to change. 

Here's how:

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, or whoever ends up running for president and vice president, should call Trump a malignant naricssist whenever possible. They should read the definition off of a card (not a teleprompter). This would give a dramatic flair and nobody expects someone to memorize this portion of the Wikipedia definition word for word:

Malignant narcissism is a psychological syndrome comprising a mix of narcissism, antisocial behavior, sadism, and a paranoid outlook on life.t is a subcategory of narcissistic personality disorder which could also include traits of antisocial personality disorder, paranoid personality disorder and sadistic personality disorder. 

Malignant narcissists are grandiose and always ready to raise hostility levels, which undermines the families and organizations in which they are involved, and dehumanizes the people with whom they associate.

Then they should say something which urges people to look it up. Biden, in his style, could say "I'm serious, folks, look it up.? This is important. Ask yourself if you want a malignant narcissist implementing Project 2025?" 

Hopefully, before too long this internet search will rank near the top of the list of of the most frequently searched terms on Google the way Project 2025 has. As you probably know Project 2025 knocked Taylor Swift off the top of the list. We'll know how well this is working by checking the Google metrics.

This is the result of a Google search of malignant narcissist.

Psychologist Dr. Johh Gartner, the founder of Duty to Warn (@DutytoWarn) was the frist to explain in the media how Trump was a malignant narcissist in "Donald Trump's malignant narcissism is toxic" which was published on May 4, 2017.

Since then numerous mental health professionals and others have written about Trump and malignant narcissism.

John Gartner has been in forefront among mental health professionals who sounded the alarm about Trump being a malignant narcissist. He appeared on "Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell" (here). In that interview he said:

If we could construct a psychiatric Frankenstein monster, we could not create a leader more dangerously mentally ill than Donald Trump. He`s a paranoid, psychopathic narcissistic who`s divorced from reality and lashes out impulsively at his imagined enemies. And this is someone as you mentioned who`s handling the nuclear codes.

 He and others produced the documentary #UNFIT: The Pyschology of Donald Trump. Here's the trailer.

At present Gartner and another clincial psychologist, Harry Segal, have a weekly podcast here called Shrinking Trump.

Psychoanalyst Lance Dodes, MD has also been outspoken in the media about Trump's dangerous psychopathogy (here)

If you add Trump to your internet search of malignant narcissist this is the result.

Here is a 2019 Psychology Today article: "Malignant Narcissism: Does the President Really Have It?" The author, Bill Eddy, a clincial social worker and a lawyer used quotes from John Gartner's arguement saying he did and another therapist's argument saying he didn't. Then in May of 2020 Eddy published an update based on how Trump was handling the Covid crisis and he seemed to be leaning towards saying that Trump was a malignant narcissist. His conclusion was:

Overall, the president’s overconfidence, self-absorption, and disrespect for science and scientists appear to have rendered him unprepared and ineffective, as well as dangerous. He appears to have become more aggressive, more reckless, more fearful, more stressed, and more isolated. These recent patterns of behavior appear to be increasing over the past year.

Some people will say that his words and deeds simply demonstrate harmless hyperbole. Others will focus on the events of the day, viewing each event in isolation as a political issue to argue about, perhaps with name-calling and extreme emotions. But those who recognize personality patterns and use personality awareness to predict future behavior may see this update as a cause for grave concern, whether or not this meets the criteria of a mental disorder.

In August of 2019 Newsweek published "George Conway Says Trump Is a 'Malignant Narcissist': He's 'Both Mentally Disordered and Evil'. Conway wasn't the only laweyer saying this: Former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis said she wouldn't vote for Trump in 2024 because he is a 'malignant narcissist'.

In January 2024 Who What Why published Trump’s Mental Illness Needs to Be Part of the Conversation in 2024. In view of the current questions about Biden's cognition the first paragraphs are especially relevant:

We periodically point out that Donald Trump is seriously mentally ill. From being a pathological liar to a textbook example of malignant narcissism, the former president displays a cluster of disorders that, in other circumstances, might not get him institutionalized, but would definitely justify some form of treatment. 

So why aren’t we talking about that?

The GOP seems intent on making President Joe Biden’s age an issue in the upcoming election (although Trump is only four years younger), and that is perfectly appropriate in light of the fact that the incumbent would be 86 at the end of a second term.

It is important that experts — rather than Fox News pundits, who interpret every one of Biden’s verbal slips as a sign of advanced dementia — weigh in on this topic. After all, being president is a stressful and highly demanding job, so is it possible for an octogenarian to do it well? That is a valid question, and it seems as though voters deserve an answer. 

But they should also know whether one of the candidates is very likely completely nuts.

John Gartner was interviewed about this by Chauncey DeVega in Salon on April 2, 2024:

After Biden's debate I was among those writing about their concern that he might be in the early stages of dementia. The day before Salon published the Gartner interview above I was quoted at length speculating as to whether Trump had dementia in another Chauncey DeVega Salon column: Clinical social worker: "With the Trump Bible, one must consider dementia."

Malignant narcissism is a psychological term the meaning of which isn't widely known the way the meaning of dementia and Alzheimer's is. Whoever runs for president can help change that. 

It is fair to question whether Biden is showing signs of early dementia now or will end up succumbing to this terrible disease during his presidency. We know that Donald Trump meets every criteria for being diagnosed as a malignant narcissist now. 

You can read this and previous blogs on two websites and on Substack. One may look better than the other because of how the platforms present the page.

Read on the WordPress Stressline.org (you can subscrbe to this on the upper left)

or….

Read on the Google Blogger platform HalBrown.org This version has a Disquis comment section which makes it easy to post links and images.

or… Hal’s Substack where you can sing up to get an email when I post a new blog.

Even if Biden lapses into the Biden of the debate from time to time if the polls say he is the most likely to beat Trump Democrats will have to stand by their man, by Hal Brown, MSW

 

Update: Yesterday I wrote the following in my blog:

Perhaps introducing a well known and incredibly popular person by the wrong name would be enough of a major slip to blow up his candidacy today. What would happen if Taylor Swift decided to endorse him? This would be headline news. Then what if she'd appeared in person at an event? What if he called her to the podium and then her called her Beyoncé?

Today this story is making the news:

Biden stumbles over Zelenskyy introduction, calls him ‘President Putin’

This is what I wrote this morning:

Even though the latest polling shows that a majority of Democrats and all US adults want Biden to step aside he has moved up in the general election poll to a tie with Trump. There aren't polls showing whether another Democrat would do better. Those who have garnered publicity by explaining why they believe Biden shouldn't run must pay attention to the polls and be willing to do whatever public mea culpa suits them and figure out a way to throw their support behind him.

Two new just-released national polls taken well after the June 27 presidential debate show President Joe Biden tied with or one point ahead of Donald Trump. This comes after a new study released Wednesday found the presidential debate "had little if any impact" on voters' preference, and showed President Biden retained more of his supporters than Donald Trump did. (RAWSTORY)

The late, great Tammy Wynette was a Democrat. This is from the Sept. 23, 1992 Los Angeles Times:

Democrats Eagerly Flaunt Hallowed Totems of GOP : Campaign: From country singers to business backers, Clinton camp has appropriated key Republican symbols.

“They’re stealing our symbols,” one Republican operative cried after she learned that country singer Tammy Wynette had performed at the glittering fund-raiser last week for Bill Clinton in Beverly Hills.

If Republicans were disappointed to learn that one of their favorite cultural emblems was fraternizing with the enemy, they were positively gloomy Monday when Clinton released the names of over 400 supporters from the business community--including several the GOP had counted in its corner.

“It shows that our base, our business base, and even our cultural base, are hemorrhaging,” said one Republican strategist close to the White House.

Her all time greatest hit song was "Stand By Your Man." The song was placed at number one on CMT's list of the Top 100 Country Music Songs.

The lyrics are simple and it would be easy to make a few changes and apply them to President Biden:

Sometimes it's hard to be a woman
Giving all your love to just one man.
You'll have bad times
And he'll have good times,
Doin' things that you don't understand.

But if you love him you'll forgive him,
Even though he's hard to understand.
And if you love him Oh be proud of him,
'Cause after all he's just a man.

Stand By Your Man,
Give him two arms to cling to,
And something warm to come to
When nights are cold and lonely.

Stand By Your Man,
And tell the world you love him.
Giving all the love you can.
Stand By Your Man.

Stand By Your Man,
And show the world you love him.
Keep giving all the love you can;

You can listen to Tammy Wynette sing the song here.

If President Biden decides to run those who have gone public expressing deep concern about his cognitive decline will have to have to sing a new tune.

George Clooney, Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, and Michael Moore, this means you. Likewise, the members of the editorial board of The New York Times and everyone who in one way or another has gone public saying Biden should step aside.

All of these people are like me in that they have deep concerns about Biden's cognitive condition. They will have to engage in uncomfortable duplicity in their public pronouncments and not express their doubts as they explain that even with needing to take a nap like Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton he will be an effective president See website): 

There are risks in invoking the name of Ronald Reagan since it is widely thought that he was suffering from Alzheimer's in the final years of his presidency, but he is still held in the highest regard by Republicans.

We will learn more about Biden's cognitive fitness today when he faces an aggresive press corp in the press conference today. There will be reporters there who have sincere concerns about his ability to handle the rigors of the presidency. There are probably some who want to make their bones by asking the question that knocks him off, off balance that is.

Biden has another face-to-face interview coming up on Monday. This time it is with Lester Holt:

Still, no matter how badly he performs in the press conference or anywhere else those wanting to prevent Trump from winning and who are likely to make the news are going to have to spin his cogntive lapses and mental missteps. They will have to keep their worries to themselves. They will have to become as adept at spinning a Biden mental malfunction as Karine Jean-Pierre:

You can read this and previous blogs on two websites and on Substack. One may look better than the other because of how the platforms present the page.

Read on the WordPress Stressline.org (you can subscrbe to this on the upper left)

or….

Read on the Google Blogger platform HalBrown.org This version has a Disquis comment section which makes it easy to post links and images.

or… Hal’s Substack where you can sing up to get an email when I post a new blog.