Does Trump Want to Fight for a Second Term? His Self-Sabotage Worries Aides

[brooklynite]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by Omaha Steve (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).

Source: New York Times

In a recent meeting with his top political advisers, President Trump was impatient as they warned him that he was on a path to defeat in November if he continued his incendiary behavior in public and on Twitter.

Days earlier, Mr. Trump had sparked alarm by responding to protests over police brutality with a threat that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.”

Mr. Trump pushed back against his aides. “I have to be myself,” he replied, according to three people familiar with the meeting. A few hours later, he posted on Twitter a letter from his former personal lawyer describing some of the protesters as “terrorists.”

In those moments, and in repeated ones since then, the president’s customary defiance has been suffused with a heightened sense of agitation as he confronts a series of external crises he has failed to contain, or has exacerbated, according to people close to him. They say his repeated acts of political self-sabotage — a widely denounced photo-op at a church for which peaceful protesters were forcibly removed, a threat to use the American military to quell protests — have significantly damaged his re-election prospects, and yet he appears mostly unable, or unwilling, to curtail them.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/17/us/politics/trump-2020-election.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

[Roy Rolling]

1. Phoning it In

He’s tired of being president, it isn’t as much fun anymore. He doesn’t want the job anymore, it’s too much work.

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

2. Then he should just resign. n/t

[Roy Rolling]

7. So True

If he had any brains he’d cut a deal to stay out of jail and resign now. It’s his only option other than spending a lifetime in jail. . .

. . . Or working like an ass to steal another election and spend four more years as the worst human on the planet, doing a job he hates.

Resign is his only option now. Especially if it leaves every one of his followers holding the bag. Wait’ll they hear.

[forgotmylogin]

11. Their best chance would be if they convinced I45 to step aside and sent the understudy on.

"The role of "Presidential Candidate" will now be played by Mike Pence."

[LiberalFighter]

17. He needs to be prosecuted.

[lark]

6. He wants to be dictator instead and plans on stealing America.

Act 1 - get us sick so it's a massive health crisis at election time
Act 2 - have gov in red states close all polls in big cities except maybe one on the fringes so it takes many hours to vote. He;s already seeded white militia types to bring their guns and stop libruls from overthrowing Hair Furor.
Act 3 - when his militia types fire on voters he will rush in declaring a national emergency, martial law, & will stop the election before the west has time to vote and declare himself winner.
Act 4 - ???? - do we become a fascistic state in fact as well as practice and lose all our constitutional rights along with our SS money which he will steal or do we start a civil war and what happens then? I think military and SCOTUS will support the fascism and what then?

[SergeStorms]

22. I don't believe he seriously wanted it to begin with.

I think he loved the "fight" between his fellow republicans for the nomination, he loved the adulation of the crowds, he loved being on the "inside" of politics for awhile, but did he seriously want all the work involved with actually being president? I really don't think so, as is evidenced by his complete refusal to learn anything about government. He stumbled and lied himself (along with Russia's assistance) into "winning" the presidency. I don't think he ever thought he really had much chance of winning.

Trump, by nature, isn't a hard worker. He likes delegating the nuts and bolts of any project he undertakes, and then doing all of the "fun things" himself. He's been that way his entire life, in anything he ever attempted, and it shows. Without someone at the top keeping a sharp eye on the business it's bound to fail, and Trump failed mightily his entire life. Six bankruptcies? There was always someone willing to give Trump another chance of failing upward though, because he was so easily controlled.

I believe the thought of another four years terrifies Trump. It's not "fun" anymore, especially since the COVID-19 outbreak. He can't have his precious "rallies" anytime he wants where everyone adores him, and if there's one thing Trump needs more than anything else, it's the adoration of others. He's so vacuous inside he has no other way to make sure he's still alive - a human being - if someone isn't listening to every word he says, and cheering his every utterance.

I believe if Trump stumbled into re-election he'd serve, but I certainly don't think he craves it. He'd rather be on the golf course every day, or at some social gathering grabbing _ussies.

[bucolic_frolic]

3. He is out of his league, demoralized, cowed, despondent, incompetent

I still would not be surprised if he is not the GOP nominee this year.

[japple]

16. I am so cynical that I wondered if that is why Mitt Romney voted to impeach.

EOM

[erronis]

4. Typical of a low-level employee that hates his job. Shirker, saboteur, thief, wants unemployment pay

Shirker - par excellence. Altho McTurtle in the senate has upped the ante.
Saboteur - every interaction with Putin, Xi, other despots in order to weaken the US and the west.
Thief - millions/billions to his family and his cohort
Laid off? expects to be well taken care of by "friends". We'll see.

[LiberalFighter]

5. If he is then he is forgetting that there are criminal charges waiting for him.

How likely is that?

[truthisfreedom]

8. We should offer him a one-time-only get out of jail free card

If he and his administration will simply resign right now, and SHUT THE FUCK UP. No tweeting, no talking. He and pence simply go away for good.

[NNadir]

9. I disagree. He is clearly a criminal. Biden has declared that he will not pardon him.

This purely evil man needs to die in prison.

[William Seger]

10. He can't change

When it comes to severe personality disorders, diagnosis is prognosis.

[blakstoneranger]

12. THE FIX IS IN--AND HE KNOWS IT

He knows the election is rigged in his favor and he expects to win no matter what he does good or bad, he's not worried. people are saying he acts like he doesn't want to be president--WELL HE DOES! How else is he going to get 24/7 media coverage without paying one dime of his own money! HE LOVES THE ATTENTION, HE LOVES THE COVERAGE, ALL OF IT! HE'S ADDICTED TO THE 24/7 NEWS CYCLE THAT SURROUNDS HIM! HE IS A MEGLOMANIAC NARCISSIST! HE CRAVES THE ATTENTION. WHERE ELSE IS HE GOING TO GET IT? If he's not the president, the media will just move on the the next POTUS. The new POTUS will get all the attention and we will all just forget about, who, what's his name? So, yeah, he wants, no, he needs to be the president. So he can stay in our daily conversation 24/7.

THE BIGGER ISSUE IS FIGURING OUT HOW HE'S RIGGING THE 2020 ELECTION!! WE CAN'T WAIT TO NOVEMER OR AFTER, WE HAVE TO STOP THIS CRIMINAL NOW!!

[olddad65]

21. Pretty naive to think that Trump is the one rigging his re-election....

The whole world knows it is the Russians and it benefits them as much as it does trump. He is Putins puppet.

[IronLionZion]

13. I hope he takes down his whole party

and GOP ceases to win majorities anywhere for at least a generation.

[Danascot]

14. Deep down he feels terribly insecure

and believes he’s worthless as his father told him in so many words throughout his youth. All his bluster is an extreme reaction to cover for his inadequacies. He’s compelled to do his BS just as a serial killer is compelled to kill. Deep down he knows he’s a failure. It wouldn’t be a surprise that he’s self sabotaging because he knows he deserves to be brought down but at the same time he's terrified of that happening. He can't afford to be seen as he truly is.

[LiberalArkie]

15. I don't think he wanted to win the first time, he just wanted the Russian mob off his back.

[dawnie51]

18. He wants out.....

it's obvious that he is done with this particular scam. And when he comes to the realization that it's in HIS best interest he'll waddle off. The ravages of his various illnesses are making his thought process become muddier and muddier, so it won't be long until the jail possibility will fade under the weight of his day to day misery, and that's when he splits, even if it's just a few days before the election. He won't care. Because it's always and forever about what HE wants, what HE needs, what is good for DONNIE. His despicable staff of toadies is trying to distract him with this shit show in Tulsa, and Saturday night itself might do that for a few hours, but the whole effort will implode within a few days afterwards. Dump really is in a bad bad place.

[not_the_one]

19. He's got the plane gassed up and ready to go.

He can still have enough golf outings at his country clubs to ensure another million or two go directly into his pockets, with all the secret service, and the rest of his "entourage", that he charges top dollar for.

He won't even go to the inauguration. That would hurt is fragile ego. He will be gone by then because he can see the indictments coming...

He'll plead medical, and run like the coward he is.

[LizBeth]

20. Not self sabotage. Trump wants to win badly, he is just inept and stupid.

[Omaha Steve]

23. After a review by forum hosts....LOCKING

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