You must hold this truth at all times:
The ONLY truth that is true for a narcissist is their truth.
To listen to Trump speak, and not understand that he is, first and foremost, ever and always, never-not, a Narcissist is to put yourself on a dangerous and slippery path toward belief.
Note this simple, yet powerful, amplification of non-truth in his inaugural comments about the Panama Canal: “Think of this, we spent more money than ever spent on a project before … and lost 38,000 lives in the building of the Panama Canal.”
Let’s start with the obvious: the inaccurate death toll cited. Yes, American lives were lost in this making of this ever-so-dangerous-to-build canal. The estimate is 5,600 Americans who died from injury, disease or poor working-conditions. Maybe it was more. Likely, it was.
Did 38,000 people die in the construction process? Possible. Absolutely possible. Probably even higher. But 38,000 US citizens? “American lives”? No. Those kind of projects bring in workers often treated in slave-like labor and conditions from poorer countries, as was absolutely the case with the Panama Canal.
But if you listen with “Trump is a normal person” ears, you’ll think, “Dang! WE lost 38,000 lives building that canal. Damn right it’s ours. Damn right, we’re taking it back.” And that’s what he wants. That’s what any narcissist wants, nay, needs. They *need** you to believe **their** truth, for that is The Only Truth that matters.
Trump claims the Panama Canal was “more money than ever spent on a project before.” And, yes, it was.
… on any project BEFORE. But not since.
Estimates vary, but the final cost is put in the $11-15 billion range. Not chump change by any means. Spent over 10 years approximately, that’s a billion and a bit a year.
The current US appropriations for infrastructure in the BIL bill passed two years ago is $2.1 trillion dollars (allocated as below) to be spent over (IDK … maybe another 10 years, maybe less, maybe more).
Point is: we spend a lot more on infrastructure now, but if you listened to Trump, thinking his personality structure is normal and not that of a narcissist, then you could easily have concluded, “Dang, we spent ALL that money, and the darn thing isn’t ours. That ain’t right. We sure are taking it back!”
But you need to listen with knowing. With awareness.
Narcissists never speak truth.
They can’t.
Trump is a narcissist.
Period.
There is nothing more important to a narcissist than the continuation, edification and glorification of Their False Self.
You think he cares about the country?
He can’t.
He may be surrounded by people who do (via their definitions of what they think is best). I would hope so.
But Trump, the individual, cannot care about anyone, any country, any anything **except** by how it makes him look to others, and for him that means appearing strong, masculine, powerful, whatever … all the things he isn’t and never will be.