Trump's current motivation

[DrPhilly]

What exactly is driving him right now in his current bizarre, insane, and dangerous behavior?

[Paul852]

Stupidity. The correct answer is always stupidity.

[paco]

I was told that running for president was just a publicity stunt and he didn’t REALLY want to win, so you think he would be relieved 

[DrPhilly]

3 minutes ago, Toty said:

2024

That falls under the 2nd choice, "Carnival Barker".

I've updated that choice to include 2024.

[Phillyterp85]

Option #5: Paying down his campaign debt by soliciting funds for his "legal defense team” 

[20dawk4life]

I’ll take all four. 

[SPIDER-MAN]

1 hour ago, paco said:

I was told that running for president was just a publicity stunt and he didn’t REALLY want to win, so you think he would be relieved 

I heard this to. He did it to get a big contract for The Apprentice. This was my uncle's opinion. Smart guy. He said he read Trump wanted to try it out AND not look like an idiot. And then something happened. All of a sudden people started buying into what he was saying. That easily got to his head. And when he won the election in 2016. That definitely got to his head and over it. But in the end I don't think he realized just how much his life was open to scrutiny as president compared to him just being a businessman.

Once the coronavirus was going on, that's when I started to think that he didn't want to be president anymore. But he was so afraid of losing his base, that now he has to pretend he's doing everything to keep a job.

I went with jail time because of the sheer manic desperation going on.

I'll throw a little bit of him continuing to bow down to his base. His true true Confederate flag waving Trump tattoo wearing base.

I think normal Republican citizens now know he's a wack job.

[DrPhilly]

56 minutes ago, Phillyterp85 said:

Option #5: Paying down his campaign debt by soliciting funds for his "legal defense team” 

That's #2 Carnival Barker.  I'll update to include the word "current".

[JohnSnowsHair]

Honestly, I think it's a combination of 2-4, but mostly 4 so that's how I voted.

I think he's too narcissistic to believe he is going to jail. So while I personally think there's a decent chance he gets prosecuted (which will bring a whole other round of insanity upon the nation), I don't know how much of this actually registers for him. He's felt above the law for too long, even predating 2016.

I also think he believes his own BS, at least to some degree, which goes to #3. I think part of him actually believes that the only way he could lose is because of something external - it couldn't possibly be voters rejecting him. I don't know if, at this stage, he actually believes he will prevail in the courts, but he's going to "keep fighting" publicly at this stage to preserve his image as a fighter, which goes to #2.

 

Ranked choice style: 4, 2, 3, 1

[DrPhilly]

I'm leaning toward all of the above.  Perhaps I should add that as an option.

[20dawk4life]

22 minutes ago, JohnSnowsHair said:

Ranked choice style: 4, 2, 3, 1

I went almost the opposite. 
2,1,4,3 

I don’t think he’s necessarily stupid when it comes to putting himself into a position to live a comfortable life, but also may have screwed up and could be looking at prison time. 

[DEagle7]

What category best fits with "being a narcissistic C"?

I agree I think it's a combo.  But gun to my head I'd pick 2.  Self interest has always been at the forefront for Donnie.

[toolg]

First, we're dealing with a novice politician that has no respect for precedent politics or law. Trump is a businessman first and foremost: He comes up with ideas and throws them out into the world to see what sticks. That's his modus operandi.

About the lawsuits, he thinks if he pays enough lawyers and files enough lawsuits, that one day the right lawyer will make the right argument in front of the right judge. The losses don't matter. They only serve to create another argument for another filing. He only needs a win somewhere to make a foothold. It's a war of attrition. He will outspend and out litigate until he gets what he wants. To him it's only a matter of time. He will never lose unless he gives up. That is also why he will never concede the election. His supporters will continue to believe he won until he concedes. They also give him some deep pockets to keep this going. (Consider the $2 million raised for Rittenhouse's bail. That's only peanuts.)  Trump has found a way to raise money by keeping this fight going, money he needs to pay the debt his campaign ran up...

The people he fired recently (Esper, Krebs): This is Trump cementing his legacy. Typically the current administration works with the next one, so any important policies can be passed on smoothly. Trump can't do that. He wants only the people loyal to him left to the transition when Biden takes the job. Except they can all be replaced in a few months, leaving no sign of any legacy...Although a GOP-majority Senate can make it difficult to confirm replacements... Or perhaps this is exactly what Trump wants, to show his supporters the new administration doesn't care about them, see how everybody was cast out?

In short, there is no long-term plan. Consider how each losing candidate concedes the election, in order to pivot to the next decision, following the will of the people. Trump has no respect for past precedent. Each decision leads to the next decision to the next... It doesn't have to make any sense. The only thing that matters is they never concede.

[SPIDER-MAN]

Between 2021 and 2024, something has to happen to Trump that doesn't allow him to run for office again. I don't think this country is going to be able to take four more years of him considering all the crap that Biden has to untangle from Trump's first stint. I can't help but hope that something happens to him. I don't wish anything bad to happen to anybody because I'm just not that type of person, but I really can't help but feel really bad things towards Trump that I won't say out loud.

[Gannan]

I can’t believe I’m the only one who voted insanity 

[Alphagrand]

22 minutes ago, SPIDER-MAN said:

Between 2021 and 2024, something has to happen to Trump that doesn't allow him to run for office again. I don't think this country is going to be able to take four more years of him considering all the crap that Biden has to untangle from Trump's first stint. I can't help but hope that something happens to him. I don't wish anything bad to happen to anybody because I'm just not that type of person, but I really can't help but feel really bad things towards Trump that I won't say out loud.

Well, he’s a 74 year-old obese slob who doesn’t exercise (no way he walks the golf course), eats a fast food diet, uses cocaine and Adderall, and believes Coca Cola is the healthy alternative to water.  He may not believe in science, but science is undefeated.

Btw — I’m starting to hear a lot of people utter out load that he never had coronavirus because there’s no way he would have recovered as quickly as he did — experimental drugs, or no experimental drugs.  It was done in a final desperate attempt to fool people into thinking COVID was nothing to worry about, and impact public perception about it before they voted.

I don’t like being that cynical, but I’d put nothing past that turd.

[SPIDER-MAN]

42 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Well, he’s a 74 year-old obese slob who doesn’t exercise (no way he walks the golf course), eats a fast food diet, uses cocaine and Adderall, and believes Coca Cola is the healthy alternative to water.  He may not believe in science, but science is undefeated.

Btw — I’m starting to hear a lot of people utter out load that he never had coronavirus because there’s no way he would have recovered as quickly as he did — experimental drugs, or no experimental drugs.  It was done in a final desperate attempt to fool people into thinking COVID was nothing to worry about, and impact public perception about it before they voted.

I don’t like being that cynical, but I’d put nothing past that turd.

I'll admit, shamefully, that the thought did cross my mind. That notion was being passed around when he went to Walter Reed. I will never understand how you can still trust a president when he is clearly heard on Bob Woodward's recordings that Trump knew just how dangerous this virus is. How do you tell yourself that voice on those tapes were either doctored or didn't exist?

Did you ever hear his reasoning for not exercising? Trump believes the body is a battery. When you work out, your using more energy from your battery than you need to. I think it was Howard Stern who said Trump was putting someone down for lifting weights because he was wasting his "battery life."

[DrPhilly]

So took me some time but I finally went with Carnival Barker.  He is the GOAT after all and he is what he is.

While I do think he sees the looming legal issues I suspect those are always a part of his life and he feels he will beat them just like he always does.  Is he insane? Yep but I think he knows he won't overturn the election and spins the whole thing to a positive in his own mind, i.e. he cons himself.  Is he stupid? Yep, well he is street smart but that only gets one so far until the stupidity overrides everything.

Con man, nothing more nothing less...

[Dave Moss]

The legal protection offered by being President is the main driving force.  He’s trying to stay out of prison for four more years (or longer).  

[DrPhilly]

1 hour ago, Dave Moss said:

The legal protection offered by being President is the main driving force.  He’s trying to stay out of prison for four more years (or longer).  

Certainly winning the poll here as the main reason

[Dave Moss]

1 minute ago, DrPhilly said:

Certainly winning the poll here as the main reason

Because it’s the one that makes the most sense.  Have to say I’m intrigued by the theory that Trump is actually a madman though...

[Alpha_TATEr]

we def need an all of the above option. 

[Bwestbrook36]

On 11/22/2020 at 7:56 AM, paco said:

I was told that running for president was just a publicity stunt and he didn’t REALLY want to win, so you think he would be relieved 

That can still be true but, he actually won and now he is unwilling to give that power up now. 

[we_gotta_believe]

On 11/22/2020 at 7:56 AM, paco said:

I was told that running for president was just a publicity stunt and he didn’t REALLY want to win, so you think he would be relieved 

He actually is relieved. You can tell by his demeanor from his most recent press conference:

 

 

[DrPhilly]

1 hour ago, Dave Moss said:

Because it’s the one that makes the most sense.  Have to say I’m intrigued by the theory that Trump is actually a madman though...

When has Trump ever "made sense"?