A Narcissist in Charge

 

Never trust anyone who strikes this pose for a photo. It is as phony as a three-dollar bill.

Almost everybody, including many who should know better, have been saying that Donald Trump is a narcissist. He was not; his character was pretty much the opposite of narcissist. Joe Biden, by contract, clearly is. We are now seeing what a real narcissist in power looks like.

Trump was notable for making a real effort to keep his campaign promises. He governed just as he campaigned. He did duck and compromise under pressure, but not to an unreasonable extent for a politician—politics, as they say, is “the art of the possible.” Biden, by contrast, ran as a moderate, but is now governing well to the left. Trump would stand and fight with the media at press conferences. Biden ducks questions and avoids the press. 

The latter is what you expect from a narcissist. A narcissist has no spine, and no principles other than his personal convenience. Denied, they will throw a tantrum; but if genuinely challenged, they will back down. After all, their self is to them the most valuable thing; they do not want to risk it any injury. So Biden takes whatever position is most convenient at the moment, depending on whom he is talking to.

Part of this is not keeping promises, including campaign promises.

Consider the Afghanistan pullout. Biden took no heed of America’s implied commitment to their allies on the ground, or to the people of Afghanistan, or to the sacrifices of American soldiers over the past twenty years. He also took little heed of possible future consequences. He did what was convenient in the moment. Typically for a narcissist, he acted impulsively, enjoying the imposition of his will.

Biden similarly impetuously halted construction on the border wall and ended Trump’s “stay in Mexico” policy. There seemed no calculation behind this, no plan for what it would lead to, only the exercise of will for its own sake. Again, with his massive spending packages; there seems to be no consideration for the likely inflationary consequences.

When the offal then inevitably hits the ventilating system, rather than accept responsibility, a narcissist will scapegoat. We see this again in the Afghanistan situation. Biden has publicly blamed the Afghan government, the Afghan army, his military advisors, and Trump. He insists he made the right decision—illogically, at the same time he blames it on them. His excuses begin to look comical. A narcissist has no honour.

Blaming the military advisors also again demonstrates the narcissist’s impulsiveness, his lack of foresight. Biden ought to have foreseen that the brass, to protect themselves, would have to publicly contradict him. 

It is dangerous to put a narcissist in a position of power. It is like letting a three year old drive your car.

Biden is now scapegoating the unvaccinated for the continued existence of COVID, and for the continued lockdowns and disruptions. This is obvious nonsense. If the vaccine works, the vaccinated need not care about the unvaccinated. If it does not work, what’s the point of anyone getting vaccinated?

A narcissist will lie with abandon. Biden will lie with abandon. He will say with apparent conviction anything that helps him at the moment. He is a fabulist. 

Trump of course has been accused of this, of lying, but Trump’s “lies” are merely the exaggerations of a salesman. It is how the game is played. They are not intended to deceive about the product; a good salesman lives or dies on repeat customers. They are meant to make you feel good about your purchase, feel as though it puts you on the winning team. 

Biden, by contrast, lies to deceive, which is the proper definition of lying: claiming false biographical details, plagiarizing, falsifying his record, citing false facts in debate. A narcissist cares only for self; truth is not a value.

Everybody says Biden, personally, is a nice guy. Some say the same of Trump, some say the opposite. This again is proof that Biden is a narcissist, and Trump is not. Biden, a narcissist, will say whatever the person with him at the moment wants to hear: whatever is to his advantage. Never trust a man who gets along with everyone. Trump has principles, and so some will find him disagreeable. 

Another way to identify a narcissist is to look at his children. A narcissist is never a good parent. He or she will always either spoil a child, or bully them, as an exercise of will. Either way, children will struggle in later life. Having no morals, he will not teach his children any, or model any to them.

Now compare Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, or Ivanka Trump, to Hunter Biden. Whom do you think was raised by a narcissist?