Trump has grown so paranoid of leaks he's 'afraid of even his friends': report

Donald Trump is growing increasingly paranoid — even when it comes to talking to people he once confided in, according to a report.

Speaking to MSNBC on Monday, "The Atlantic's" Jeffrey Goldberg and Puck News reporter Tara Palmeri discussed the danger of a second term for Trump in the White House.

Goldberg wrote an article, published Monday, that sends a sharp warning which he said was his attempt at doing whatever he could to help stop a demagogue from coming to power and bringing down American democracy. His is one of many articles in the magazine this month sounding the alarm about the country's future and the safeguards that were once on staff in the White House.

"The available supply of serious, qualified people willing to serve in a Trump administration has dwindled since 2017. After all, the so-called adults didn’t fare so well in their respective rooms. Some quit in frustration or disgrace; others were publicly fired by the president. Several have spent their post–White House lives fielding congressional subpoenas and getting indicted," MSNBC's Ali Velshi read from "The Atlantic's"McKay Coppins.

Palmeri explained that the first years of the Trump White House were hindered by leaks from inside that were an effort to stop his most extreme plots and plans.

"It is not the case anymore. He's got three people at the top, and they are supplicants," said Palmeri.

"They make sure his actions are effectuated. They've done a lot on the campaign trail in terms of just changing the delegate system to work in their favor."

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Trump loyalists have changed the Republican Party rules in states across the country to help him grab the nomination earlier in the primary process, the Los Angeles Times explained in a September report.

"Trump is guarded," Palmari continued. "He's very afraid of even his friends he used to call all the time outside of the White House, who would then leak to try to stop things. It's not a gang of rivals anymore. It is Trump loyalists, and it will be Trump loyalists.

"They've had all these years to go through the resumes and try to flag anyone who seems like they might defy his orders in any way. We won't get the heads-up when he tries to pull out of NATO or tries to round up migrants. That's not the process. Journalism, democracy, and — that's just not going to be a facet because he can do it before we even know."

See the full discussion in the video below or at the link here.

Trump is growing increasingly paranoid — refusing to speak to those he once called onyoutu.be