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Harvard Psychiatrist Breaks Down Trump’s ‘Severe, Continuous, Mental Disturbance’

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“If you consider the 7 traits that define Antisocial Personality Disorder in the DSM-5, he meets every one of them.”

This week, President Donald Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, testified before the House Oversight Committee about his role in facilitating Trump’s potential crimes and misbehaviors.

At the same time, Trump met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. The summit failed to secure a de-nuclearization deal and Trump drew criticism when he said that he believed Jong Un’s claim that he hadn’t been aware of Otto Warmbier, the American student imprisoned in North Korea, who died soon after his release to the US.

Raw Story spoke with Dr. Lance Dodes, a Training and Supervising Analyst Emeritus with the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. He recently retired as an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

Dodes is a contributor to The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 27 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Assess a President. His chapter makes the case that Trump suffers from a dangerous sociopathic disorder.

Tana Ganeva: Following what was largely seen as a failed summit with Kim Jong Un, Donald Trump said he believed the dictator when he said he hadn’t known about Otto Warmbier. Do you see strains of Trump’s sociopathy in this?

Lance Dodes: Mr. Trump is a sociopath, in that he meets every diagnostic criterion for the official diagnostic term “Antisocial Personality Disorder.” The fact that this is a personality disorder, rather than simply a single symptom such as anxiety or depression, means that all his actions are signs of this severe, continuous, mental disturbance.

To understand his actions, it is essential to keep in mind that sociopaths have only one goal: to enhance themselves, and that in pursuing their self-interest, they lack both normal human empathy for others and a normal human conscience. Cheating, conning, lying, stealing, threatening are all done with no remorse.

When stressed with facts that would require them to admit failure, or even that others know more or are more capable than them, sociopaths lose track of reality, becoming delusional with insistence on the truth of what they psychologically need to maintain their superior view of themselves. Indeed, nobody matters except to the degree they can serve the sociopath’s personal needs.

That’s why loyalty is demanded, but as soon as an associate disagrees, the sociopath turns on them with a fury; there was never a real relationship to begin with.

Mr. Trump’s denial of the facts about Mr. Warmbier is consistent with his sociopathy. He ignores reality, is unremorseful about lying and does not hesitate to sacrifice the feelings of others such as Mr. Warmbier’s family. We don’t know exactly why he lied in this case, but one possibility is that Mr. Trump has heavily promoted his relationship with Kim as evidence of his superior ability to manage world tensions and thinks that confronting Kim would interfere with that, hence personally diminishing Mr. Trump. In any case, Mr. Trump’s absence of feelings for Mr. Warmbier or his family is the same as his absence of feelings for the disabled reporter he mocked, for religious and racial minorities, for children separated from their parents at the border and on and on.

Tana Ganeva: What made you first consider that Donald Trump is a sociopath?

Lance Dodes: Mr. Trump has a long history that proves his diagnosis. If you consider the 7 traits that define Antisocial Personality Disorder in the DSM-5, he meets every one of them:

1. Failure to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behaviors.
2. Deceitfulness, as indicated by repeated lying … or conning others for personal profit or pleasure
3. Impulsivity or failure to plan ahead
4. Irritability and aggressiveness
5. Reckless disregard for safety of self or others.
6. Consistent irresponsibility, as indicated by repeated failure to sustain consistent work behavior or honor financial obligations
7. Lack of remorse, as indicated by being indifferent to or rationalizing having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another.

Tana Ganeva: What’s the danger of having a sociopath in charge of the US?

Lance Dodes: Sociopathy is the most serious mental disability possible for the President. Other conditions do not lead to continual disregard for the welfare of others, lying, cheating, and repeated loss of reality under stress.

The bogus argument made by some that Abraham Lincoln is known to have suffered with depression, so Mr. Trump is not different, fails on this point. Lincoln’s depression did not make him cruel or indifferent to the feelings of others, cheat, lie, lose track of reality when stressed, or have a need to be an absolute ruler over everyone.

There are two major risks from Mr. Trump.

First, there is a serious risk that he will start a war to distract the country from his multiple failures and his attempts to become a one-man ruler. This is most likely to occur as he is stressed by challenges to his position as President. Other tyrants have plunged their nations into war, sometimes by creating an international incident as an excuse, to avoid internal disputes and solidify power.

Second, there is a serious risk of his destroying democracy in this country. He has already eroded it by attacking the principle of balance of powers, attacking the judicial system and the Congress, attempting to gather all power to himself. He has tried to destroy our free press by claiming that its criticisms of him are “fake news” and that a free press is the enemy of the people. These are well-known tactics of would-be tyrants, and are signs of sociopathy with his single-minded concern for himself and absence of conscience or concern for the feelings or lives of anyone else.

 

Image by U.S. State Dept. via Flickr 

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News

‘Surrounded by Sharks’: After Touring ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Trump Vows to Renovate Original

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17 hours ago

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July 1, 2025

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President Donald Trump toured “Alligator Alcatraz” on Tuesday, the federal immigration detention facility in the Florida Everglades that boasts alligators as part of a natural escape barrier. Now, Trump is vowing to renovate the original Alcatraz, just off the coast of California, a former federal maximum security prison that he claims is, or will be, “surrounded by sharks.”

Before jetting off to Florida, Trump joked with reporters (video below) about detainees facing deportation who would have to navigate around the alligators in the Everglades should they try to escape.

Later in the day, Trump posted to his social media website about his new inspiration.

“Because of the Violence and Criminality I have seen due to the Open Border Policy of Sleepy Joe Biden, in particular allowing millions of people into our Country who shouldn’t be here, I wanted something representative to show how we fight back, and then, it happened,” the President wrote.

READ MORE: ‘This Is Fascism’: Trump Sparks Fury After Calling to Deport U.S. Citizens

“I saw a picture of ALCATRAZ looking so foreboding, and I said, ‘We’re going to look into renovating and rebuilding the famous ALCATRAZ Prison sitting high on the Bay, surrounded by sharks. What a symbol it is, and will be!’ Conceptual work started six months ago, and various prison development firms are looking at doing it with us. Still a little early, but lots of promise!”

CNN’s Edward-Isaac Dovere remarked, “the president says he’s looking into spending federal money, in part, to put sharks into the San Francisco Bay.”

If Trump actually wants Alcatraz to be surrounded by truly dangerous sharks, as Dovere notes he may have to bring them there. The ones currently surrounding the tiny island reportedly may not be especially dangerous, according to the Pacific Open Water Swim Co.

Other critics blasted Trump’s remarks.

Investment banker Evaristus Odinikaeze remarked, “So we’re rebuilding Alcatraz based on… a vibe?”

“Trump saw a moody picture of a defunct prison and decided that’s the future of immigration policy, locking up desperate families on a shark-surrounded island like a Bond villain with zoning permits,” he added. “This cruel and reckless governance is nothing but a cinematic cosplay with real human lives at stake.”

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Another social media user wrote: “Trump wants to bring back Alcatraz. Not to house mob bosses or war criminals, but to make a ‘symbol’ out of locking up desperate migrants. Sharks and spectacle. This isn’t immigration policy. It’s a twisted cruelty straight out of a 1930s Germany. You don’t rebuild a prison for the camera unless cruelty is the point. That’s not ‘fighting back’, that’s feeding fear and hatred to your base and calling it leadership. History already wrote this playbook, and it ends in concentration camps, not justice. We are better than this, no?”

Watch the video below or at this link.

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Image via Reuters

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‘This Is Fascism’: Trump Sparks Fury After Calling to Deport U.S. Citizens

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19 hours ago

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July 1, 2025

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President Donald Trump ignited outrage after touring a new federal migrant mass detention site in the Florida Everglades—denounced by some as a modern-day concentration camp—and calling for the deportation of some U.S. citizens who commit crimes.

“I’d like to say it, you know, it’s a little controversial, but I couldn’t care less,” the President began. “We have a lot of bad criminals that came into the, into this country, and they came in stupidly—it was an unforced error, it was an incompetent president that allowed it to happen. It was an autopen, maybe, that allowed it to happen.”

“And it did happen,” he continued, “but we also have a lot of bad people that have been here for a long time, people that whacked people over the head with a baseball bat from behind when they’re not looking and killed them. People that knife you when you’re walking down the street. They’re not new to our country. They’re old to our country. Many of them are born in our country.”

“I think we ought to get them the hell out of here, too, you want to know the truth,” Trump declared.

READ MORE: Trump Pushes Census Do-Over to Exclude Non-Citizens — and to Immediately Redistrict House

The President’s remarks weren’t idle speculation or musings—they reflect a deliberate and dangerous shift in policy.

“The Justice Department is aggressively prioritizing efforts to strip some Americans of their U.S. citizenship,” NPR reported on Monday. “Department leadership is directing its attorneys to prioritize denaturalization in cases involving naturalized citizens who commit certain crimes — and giving U.S. attorneys wider discretion on when to pursue this tactic, according to a June 11 memo published online.”

Critics were aghast at Trump’s remarks.

“Citizens. I’m going to say it again. This is fascism. MAGA can cry all you want but this is exactly what every f—— dictator in history wanted. Wake the f— up,” wrote Fred Wellman, a graduate of West Point and the Harvard Kennedy School who is now the host of the podcast “On Democracy.”

“Trump claimed he’d focus on deporting immigrants with criminal records,” noted U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA). “Now, he’s indiscriminately targeting all immigrants. So when he says American citizens are next, we should take it seriously.”

“Someone, anyone, please tell me how this isn’t straight up fascist,” urged former U.S. Ambassador Luis Moreno.

READ MORE: ‘Panic Button’: JD Vance Blasted After Calling $1T in Medicaid Cuts ‘Minutiae’

“The American experiment is predicated on the notion that we’re a place where people can disagree & live peacefully together,” wrote Oklahoma Democratic state Representative Forrest Bennett. “He thinks people who disagree with him are ‘bad.’ He’s counting on his supporters to value short term satisfaction over longterm preservation of rights.”

Referring to remarks Trump made in April, Professor of history and scholar of fascism Ruth Ben-Ghiat issued this warning: “‘The Homegrowns Will Be Next,’ is one of the more chilling authoritarian phrases I have heard. This is also why they want to increase ICE’s budget so much.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘If It Is the Last Thing I Do’: Musk Vows to Unseat Lawmakers Voting for Budget Bill

 

Image via Reuters

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Trump Pushes Census Do-Over to Exclude Non-Citizens — and to Immediately Redistrict House

Published

21 hours ago

on

July 1, 2025

By

President Donald Trump says he is aware of and supports proposed legislation that would require the federal government to perform a new U.S. Census, by excluding non-citizens. The revised count would be used to immediately reapportion seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, presumably also for the 2026 election, despite constitutional decennial requirements and the constitutional mandate that all “persons” be counted.

During his first term, Trump tried to add a citizenship question to the U.S. Census, but courts struck down that effort. The Constitution is clear: it states the “whole number of persons in each state” must be counted. Courts have ruled this includes non-citizens, including undocumented immigrants.

Standing with his former presidential primary opponent, Governor Ron DeSantis, in Florida, Trump was told about the “Make American Elections Great Again” bill, which is sponsored by U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).

READ MORE: ‘Panic Button’: JD Vance Blasted After Calling $1T in Medicaid Cuts ‘Minutiae’

A reporter described the bill to Trump, saying it would force “the U.S. Census Bureau to redo the census to actually get an account of how many Americans with proof of citizenship are in our country, redistricting some of the House districts.”

“I love it,” the President told reporters.

According to Greene, her legislation “will save America’s elections from ever being stolen again!” She added it will count U.S. citizens only, then “direct states to immediately begin a redistricting of all U.S. House seats … using only the population of United States citizens,” despite constitutional parameters that the census must count every person, and be conducted every ten years. Constitutionally, a new census is not scheduled until 2030.

“We want to bring our elections back,” Trump told reporters. “The election in 2020 was rigged—millions and millions of votes,” he baselessly claimed.

READ MORE: ‘If It Is the Last Thing I Do’: Musk Vows to Unseat Lawmakers Voting for Budget Bill

“It had to do with COVID and a lot of things, but it really had to do with the crooked people. The Democrats are very good at cheating in elections,” Trump also alleged.

Governor DeSantis claimed that Florida was “gypped” in 2020 because the census added only one congressional district to his state.

Although the census was conducted when Trump was in office in 2020, DeSantis called it the “Biden census.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Stunning Incoherence’: Fox Host Mocked for Spinning Trump’s Work Visa Flip-Flop

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