President Donald Trump's biographer came to a startling conclusion Thursday night — that the president actually believes what he's saying.
And the writer believes that is what will finally bring the Republican Party crashing down in just 10 months from now.
Michael Wolff was speaking to a Daily Beast-hosted live audience in New York City on Wednesday night, and described hearing Trump speak at Davos earlier in the day.
“When America booms, the entire world booms," he told world leaders at the economic forum. "That’s been the history. When it goes bad, it goes bad. You all follow us down, and you follow us up.
“And we’re at a point that we’ve never—I don’t believe we’ve ever been. I never thought we could do it this quickly. My biggest surprise is, I thought it would take more than a year, maybe like a year and one month. But it’s happened very quickly.”
Wolff said, “His depiction of the last year was that everything had gone remarkably well: the best economy in the world.
“ ... I thought, ‘God, how can he do this? He doesn’t mean [it], he can’t possibly believe it.’ But I thought, ‘Oh, no, actually, he believes it.
“So he lives in this Trump reality bubble, and that’s how he can keep going on this. And what do you do about that? You have to finally come to the conclusion that the President of the United States is delusional. He’s undoubtedly delusional.”
Republicans currently maintain a razor-thin House majority.
Wolff warned that Trump's economic messaging contradicts public sentiment. "The economy is going to defeat the Republicans in November," Wolff said.
Recent polling contradicts Trump's economic optimism. A YouGov/The Economist survey found that 53 percent of Americans believe the economy is worsening, while 61 percent disapprove of Trump's inflation response. A Wall Street Journal poll showed Americans view Trump as prioritizing foreign affairs over economic concerns. A Quinnipiac University poll found voters consider rising costs a serious problem.
Wolff offered a stark assessment of Republican prospects: "The Democrats should just go home and they'll be fine in November. So he'll definitely lose the House in November. I think the Senate may become competitive, too, but I think the Republican world is going to become a difficult place to be in, a difficult place to inhabit after the midterm elections."
"But Trump is separate from the Republicans. I mean, he'll sacrifice the Republicans for his own—the Trump show."
Wolff predicted Trump's enduring political power stems from his unique personal brand rather than ideology. He stated: "It all passes with Donald Trump. Donald Trump is not replaceable. He is an absolutely unique figure. No one will be Donald Trump again, and this entire MAGA movement, it is all directed at Trump. It's not ideological America. I often try to make the distinction: it's not a political base. It's a fan base."