A couple of months ago, I speculated on why Donald Trump absconded with those highly sensitive, classified documents.
➢ Why did Trump take those documents? Psychopathology
➢ Why did Trump take those documents? Psychopathology (part 2)
From the latter:
I speculated that Donald Trump took those ultra-sensitive documents due to psychopathology, specifically that his behavior matched that of a pathological collector. Someone asked in the comments whether that was a fair characterization, and I clarified what I meant by my attempt to classify him as an “avaricious megalomaniac”:
It’s kind of a kleptomania attached to a very specific delusion (or set of delusions). For example, to turn to a pop culture reference, take the Netflix series You. The main character suffers from delusional disorder where he deeply imagines—that is, takes to be true—that a certain woman is in love with him. I don't want to spoil the series for anyone who still wants to watch it, but I won’t be giving too much away to say that you get to see that type of behavior enacted for the audience’s observation, and we’re invited into the scene as spectators positioned to be sympathetic to the main character, who obviously suffers from this delusion.
That's just an example, but in other media you can see the trope: the creep who steals underwear from an unattended dryer in a laundromat; the stereotype of the serial killer who steals a piece of jewelry or such from each victim, etc. It’s a common enough trope.
The Washington Post now offers an exclusive where close associates of Trump admit that he took them due to “ego”, not for financial or situational gain:
Federal agents and prosecutors have come to believe former president Donald Trump’s motive for allegedly taking and keeping classified documents was largely his ego and a desire to hold on to the materials as trophies or mementos, according to people familiar with the matter.
As part of the investigation, federal authorities reviewed the classified documents that were recovered from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home and private club, looking to see if the types of information contained in them pointed to any kind of pattern or similarities, according to these people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
That review has not found any apparent business advantage to the types of classified information in Trump’s possession, these people said. FBI interviews with witnesses so far, they said, also do not point to any nefarious effort by Trump to leverage, sell or use the government secrets. Instead, the former president seemed motivated by a more basic desire not to give up what he believed was his property, these people said.
(The link should get you beyond the paywall. Emphasis above is mine.)
Several Trump advisers said that each time he was asked to give documents or materials back, his stance hardened, and that he gravitated toward lawyers and advisers who indulged his more pugilistic desires. Trump repeatedly said the materials were his, not the government’s — often in profane terms, two of these people said.
The man has confused his belongings with those of the United States, a governmental body. This is how large his ego has become inflated. He cannot maintain boundaries in this instance. He sees the state’s property as his; it is fair to assume he also sees himself as the state.
He is unrepentant, according to these sources. It does not appear that he believes that he is wrong in any sense. In that way, I consider him to be delusional, anti-social (as in psychopathic), or both. These are not mutually exclusive states of being.
His lack of remorse would indicate to me a need to prosecute him thoroughly. If anyone deserves to have the book thrown at him, it’s Donald Trump, though I don’t necessarily believe he needs to have the worst sentence visited upon him (no capital punishment; no Supermax prisons; no solitary confinement, which is torturous to all but a tiny few). There’s no need to be draconian.
He does need punishment, though. He apparently lacked it in his early life, failing up and never being held accountable for his deleterious deeds. He must be demonstrably shown that his actions have consequences. If he indeed is a psychopath (which you may or may not agree with but I believe I’ve set out the leading indicators well enough in previous diaries [including this one]), then he won’t come to a realization, a eureka moment where he understands how utterly he has injured and mishandled people, individually and as a whole.
We people of the United States have been harmed by his actions, as well as the people of the nations whose intelligence he may have compromised as well. We deserve recompense as much as Trump deserves correction.
UPDATE: Wednesday, Nov 16, 2022 · 8:04:57 PM +00:00 · novapsyche
It occurs to me that some people are disputing Trump’s possible motive for taking these documents. I mean to say that this story supports the proposition of Trump’s psychopathology. I meant not to advance a particular theory as to other possible motives for his behavior. If he thinks the documents belong to him, then it follows that he believes he has the right to sell or barter them, etc. The derivation of ownership is the concept I explore here and the implications thereof.