As President Donald Trump turns 80 years old, an expert in politics and government sounded the alarm Sunday over what they say is making the president “even more dangerous,” and predicted that Americans had a “frightening” two years ahead of them.
Trump has faced growing scrutiny over what some critics argue are signs of his cognitive decline, including apparent spells of dozing off during cabinet meetings, increased instances of rambling during speeches and an unexplained MRI scan. The issue, argued Larry Jacobs, who heads the University of Minnesota’s Center for the Study of Politics and Governance, was that Trump's “limited toolkit” compared with other presidents made his alleged cognitive decline exponentially more “dangerous.”
“The recklessness of decisions, the failure to think in a logical evidence-based way, the acting on impulse, the losing track of reality versus the talking points – all these things are being accelerated by Trump’s age,” Jacobs said, speaking with The Guardian for its report Sunday.
“Most presidents’ skill set begins to fade as they age; Trump has got such a limited toolkit that it’s putting him over the edge.”
Examples of Trump’s alleged cognitive decline cited by The Guardian include the president’s “scattergun statements that give Republican strategists heartburn,” statements like “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation” or “I love the inflation,” both made within the past 40 days.
As the number of self-damaging remarks from Trump increase in frequency, Jacobs warned that Americans should prepare themselves for a difficult two years.
“America and the world are in for a frightening two years,” he told The Guardian. “Trump has too much power for someone with so little connection to reality. Age is making Trump an even more dangerous president.”