President Donald Trump lied himself into cognitive decline, a New York Times columnist argued Saturday.
David French made this bold claim in conversation with fellow Times writers Michelle Goldberg and Michelle Cottle.
"The line between serial liar and alternate reality is very blurry," French said. "Because what I’ve seen is, a person will lie so much and create such a cognitive dissonance that, over time, they morph into the alternate reality. They start to believe their own lies."
The writers argued this between reality and falsehood might explain Trump's propensity for falling asleep in public, as he appeared to do at this year's 9/11 Memorial.
This prompted Goldberg to claim, "Trump would be doing a better job if he was awake."
Goldberg argued Trump hasn't changed that much — while it may disturb some to see the president compare himself to Jesus, bombast has always been key to his persona. Failure, too, she said.
"As his catastrophes metastasize, that mythos that once surrounded him becomes more and more threadbare," she said. "But this is the same person that bankrupted casinos."
Now, as Trump's poll numbers tank and the MAGA base begins to distrust their powerful leader was ever telling the truth, the president's ability to sell himself has begun to fail him, Goldberg argued.
The reason, according to Goldberg, is the increasingly small world he's created for himself.
"His political instincts are clearly fading," she said. "He’s even more in a bubble."