Trump thinks perception matters more than reality — because he still hasn't learned his lesson: analysis

Former President Donald Trump appears to believe in the power of positive reality more than empirically verifiable reality, according to a new CNN analysis.

CNN editor-at-large Chris Cillizza noted Trump's advice that Dr. Mehmet Oz "should declare victory" in the race for the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania.

"It makes it much harder for them to cheat with the ballots that they 'just happened to find," Trump said, as ballots were being counted.

Cillizza said it was a pattern for Trump.

"What Trump's statement makes clear is that he hasn't learned the right (or any) lessons from the 2020 election. (And no, I am not surprised.) For Trump -- in politics and life -- perception is all that matters," he wrote. "When you lose -- whether it's in the 2016 Iowa caucuses or the 2020 general election -- insist that you, in fact, won. Tell everyone you won enough times, and they might start to believe it."

Cillizza noted it was unlikely we would know the outcome for days and that an automatic recount may be triggered.

"Given all of that, the responsible thing to do is wait until all the ballots are counted (or recounted) before declaring victory. Which is the opposite of what Trump wants Oz to do," he noted.

Read the full analysis.