Trump’s recent decisions have been erratic. His speech is incoherent, his rhetoric outrageous, and he has even cast himself as Jesus Christ. These abnormal behaviors have surfaced before, but since he launched war on Iran, they have only intensified.
More and more people across US political circles are questioning whether he is actually deranged, and even his die-hard supporters and former aides say he is “really crazy.” They are not just talking. They are taking action, pushing to invoke the 25th Amendment and calling on Vice President Vance and Cabinet members to remove him.
Support for that idea is rising fast. The odds of success are slim, but the more it is said, the more the public comes to believe he is “unwell,” and that is dragging his approval ratings down further.
The NYT says Trump’s recent erratic, incoherent behavior has politicians across the spectrum openly questioning whether he’s “mentally unstable,” with even former allies calling him “crazy” and urging his removal.
Claims that Trump is “deranged” are nothing new. As far back as 2017, when he first took office, 35 mental health experts published an open letter in a Us newspaper warning that he was “extremely emotionally unstable,” as reflected in his speech and behavior, and said he was “unable to safely perform the duties of president.”
At the time, psychiatrist Allen Francesces, one of the signatories, said: “Mr. Trump causes severe distress rather than experiencing it and has been richly rewarded, rather than punished, for his grandiosity, self-absorption and lack of empathy.” That “diagnosis” still fits Trump today, and the case against him sounds even stronger now.
This controversy has only grown. His recent war on Iran has plunged the world into chaos, and the issue of “mental abnormality” has drawn even greater attention.
The New York Times today published a report headlined “Trump’s Erratic Behavior and Extreme Comments Revive Mental Health Debate”. The article says Democrats are not the only ones raising doubts. Former supporters in the Republican Party, along with his former aides and MAGA (Make America Great Again) die-hards, are also saying “It's insanity” and calling him “a genocidal lunatic”.
Examples of Erratic Conduct
The report points to several recent examples, including Trump’s sudden blast that “A whole civilization will die tonight” in reference to Iran. His decisions, it says, also keep shifting and contradicting themselves. He has also done things no other president has done, publicly attacking Pope Leo XIV by name and calling him “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy.” It shows, the report suggests, a portrait of a hysterical dictator.
On April 13th, Trump posted an AI image casting himself as Jesus Christ, which many saw as yet another sign of “not doing too hot”.
Democrats are, naturally, making the most out of Trump’s erratic words and actions. So far, about 70 members of Congress have pushed to invoke the Twenty-fifth Amendment, urging Vice President Vance and Cabinet members to remove him on the grounds of “presidential disability.” The odds are close to zero, since Vance remains loyal to him and would never stage a palace coup. Even so, the uproar will almost certainly deepen damage to Trump’s image and make his already weak approval ratings worse.
The New York Times noted that, tellingly, Republican supporters, MAGA supporters and even some of Trump’s former staff are voicing similar doubts.
Former Republican congressman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who broke with Trump some time ago, told CNN that Trump’s claim he would wipe out Iranian civilization was “Not tough rhetoric, it's insanity.” Far-right influencer Candace Owens, once a loyal Trump backer, also called Trump “a genocidal lunatic”, while Alex Jones, the conspiracy theorist and founder of Infowars, said Trump “does babble and sounds like the brain’s not doing too hot.”
White House Allies Speak Out
Trump’s first-term aides, including White House lawyer Ty Cobb, are even blunter. They say he is “a man who is clearly insane,” and that a string of late-night posts on social media “highlights the level of his insanity.”
Trump bristles when these people tell him he is “mentally unwell.” He fires back: “They’re stupid people, they know it, their families know it, and everyone else knows it, too! They’re NUT JOBS, TROUBLEMAKERS, and will say anything necessary for some ‘free’ and cheap publicity.” Of course, a crazy person would never admit to being crazy, just as a drunk refuses to admit he’s drunk.
If Trump were not holding power, whether he is mentally unwell or not would not matter. But the United States is at war now, and chaotic decisions from him would be a serious matter. Former CIA Director John Brennan warns that “this man is clearly mentally unstable,” yet he controls the vast firepower of the nuclear arsenal; if he remains commander-in-chief, the concern is enormous. Brennan therefore also calls for his removal under the 25th Amendment.
War Powers and Public Fear
That said, it is basically impossible to bring Trump down right now. But when so many voices speak in unison and question whether he is “mentally unwell,” the public is likely to feel the same way too, delivering the latest blow to his support. An Ipsos poll last month found that 61 percent thought he was erratic; another YouGov survey found that half of respondents said he was unfit to be president. The numbers may still have further to rise.
As the saying goes, people share the same heart and mind. Putting a supposedly “mentally deranged” person in charge of a country and its armed forces is indeed frightening. But beyond hoping he does not go off the rails, what else can be done?
Lai Ting-yiu
What Say You?
** The blog article is the sole responsibility of the author and does not represent the position of our company. **
