• Subscriptions
    • Log in
    Ad-Free Login - Go Ad-Free & Join The Movement
    The fight for Democracy hasn’t ended. Join Raw Story Investigates for $1. Support honest journalism.
    The fight for Democracy hasn’t ended. Join Raw Story Investigates for $1. Support honest journalism.Click to enable push notifications.
    Listen Now: The New Raw Story PodcastUS NEWSOpinionvideoget the newsletter
    AD-FREE LOGIN
    Ad-Free Login - Go Ad-Free & Join The Movement
    The fight for Democracy hasn’t ended. Join Raw Story Investigates for $1. Support honest journalism.
    The fight for Democracy hasn’t ended. Join Raw Story Investigates for $1. Support honest journalism.Click to enable push notifications.
    • Home
    • New: Shop to Support Independent Journalism
    • We Have Issues
    • Trump
    • U.S. News
    • Video
    • Ad-Free Login
    Tired of ads? Want to support our progressive journalism? Click to learn more.
    JOIN FOR $1

    'Flying monkeys': Experts reveal how Donald Trump and other cult leaders infect their followers

    Bandy X. Lee And Harper West
    January 22, 2021

    Thanks for your support!

    This article was paid for by reader donations to Raw Story Investigates.

    Trump supporters clash with police and security forces. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP)

    This article was paid for by Raw Story subscribers. Not a subscriber? Try us and go ad-free for $1. Prefer to give a one-time tip? Click here.

    Bandy X. Lee And Harper West

    When we published The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump in 2017, we emphasized that, despite its title, Donald Trump was not our main focus. His presidency was more a statement about the nation and its state of public mental health, of which he was a barometer at the time of election and then the chief accelerant and exacerbator of its defects once in office.

    Over the course of the last four years, we have witnessed how his "base" remained consistently at more or less 40% of the population despite continuous scandals and policy failures, including vastly increasing the death toll from COVID-19 through malfeasance and misfeasance and even a deadly assault on the Capitol. We had warned that this unwavering adherence was not a product of healthy, rational and well-informed decision-making, but followed more the pattern of pathological, abusive relationships.

    Trump followers' unwavering adherence was not a product of healthy, rational and well-informed decision-making, but followed more the pattern of pathological, abusive relationships.

    This does not mean that each follower of the Trump will exhibit abnormal psychology; on the contrary, they will resemble more victims of abuse and members of a cult, predisposed not just because of personal trauma history but because of a state of poor collective mental health. Societal mental health is not the same as the sum of the mental health of individual members, and the themes and conflicts of groups are not the same as personal struggles, even though they interact.

    Some problems are better conceived of as cultural disorders, as the World Mental Health Coalition recently labeled racism and white supremacy. Violence, in general, fits more the category of a societal disorder than an individual one—indeed, violence does not depend as much on individual characteristics, such as individual mental illness, as it does on social ones, such as levels of inequality in a society.

    U.S. Primed for Abuse

    It is important to note how the United States as a whole in the last few decades has been primed for nationwide vulnerability to narcissistic abuse, no matter the individual variations in resistance. After four years of the Trump presidency, many of us who opposed him feel traumatized and victimized by his emotional abuse. What may be surprising to some is that his followers are also victims of his abuse.

    Donald Trump has attempted to manipulate reality for all of us, but the millions of people who support him are deeply under his spell. He even manipulated them to invade the Capitol, both for his own strategic gain to pressure Congressional Republicans to oppose Electoral College tallies and to serve his emotional need to continue the lie that he won the election. Some insurrectionists may spend years in prison all so their leader could temporarily perpetuate a self-delusion to feel better about himself.

    'Love Bombing'

    Extreme narcissists often begin relationships with what is called "love bombing," a false expression of affection that frequently involves over-praising and over-promising.

    Trump actually said in private that he dislikes his followers, even noting about the insurrection that it looked "low class." He likely holds contempt, furthermore, that they have failed—never mind that, according to an FBI agent, the nation barely escaped a massacre of its lawmakers by a minor miracle.

    Yet at rallies, he praises supporters effusively and in a video after the insurrection told them: "We love you. You're very special." This love bombing forms a trauma bond in the victim of enmeshed patterns of dependency or emotional addiction. Trump followers crave his attention and approval, and he gives it to them, mainly because they then feed him the attention he craves. For the victim, it can lead to loss of sense of self, confusion and a relentless clinging to the abuser.

    The extreme narcissist, however, views all relationships through the lens of: "What's in it for me?" This transactional pattern is revealed in Trump's abrupt abandonment of those he perceives to be disloyal to him or even fails to "win" on his behalf. If the former president is convicted in the Senate and barred from running for office in 2024, his followers may be surprised at how immediately his need for their attention and financial support disappears. Those who understand abusive personalities will not be surprised at all.

    'Flying Monkeys'

    Cult leaders use "deluded dupes" for their own purposes, mostly to generate narcissistic supply or attention. Also, a priority is harvesting assets for personal use, as we see from the hundreds of millions of dollars Trump raised after he lost the election and monetized his presidency as never before.

    Another way abusers victimize is by recruiting others to unwittingly do their dirty work. A popular psychological label for them is "flying monkeys," who are the "henchmen" and "henchwomen" surrounding abusers to support their warped view of reality and self-centered behavior. Manipulation, intimidation, or opportunism and corruption may have caused their collusion with the extreme narcissist, but they serve to legitimize and maintain the abusive status quo.

    Those in the population who are narcissistically wounded and insecure like to feel "in the know," or part of a secret "in group," which makes them feel powerful with a sense of belonging. As a result, they are attracted to conspiracy theories and cult-like organizations, a pattern that those at the Jan. 6 insurrection embodied, through membership in groups such as QAnon and Proud Boys.

    When a society is made psychologically vulnerable through relative deprivation, then large segments of the population come to be drawn to narcissistic abuse or even "shared psychosis." Sometimes called "folie à millions" or "madness among millions," shared psychosis refers to the infectiousness of severe symptoms when a highly symptomatic individual is given an influential position.

    Delusions Worse than Lies

    When "mistruths" are not just strategic lies but delusions, for example, they spread much more rapidly. We can see this in how dramatically polls changed: only a small minority of Republicans thought in early November that Joe Biden did not win, but in a recent poll three out of four do not believe Biden won the election legitimately.

    Removal of the highly symptomatic person from influence and exposure, such as from social media platforms, have already dissipated much of Donald Trump's influence and ability to incite violence.

    Further accountability, prosecution, and limit setting will help discredit and "deprogram" his stronghold on his hitherto steadfast followers. We have learned how powerful the spread and reach of mental pathology can be—to the point of almost losing our democracy!—but we must also recognize that these are well-known dynamics throughout history that are preventable. Next time, we can do better through greater mental health awareness and by holding our leaders to a mental health standard.

    Harper West, M.A., L.L.P. (harperwest.co) is a licensed psychotherapist, award-winning author and developer of self-acceptance psychology. Both she and Dr. Lee (bandylee.com) have participated in town hall series that are available here and here.

    This article was paid for by Raw Story subscribers. Not a subscriber? Try us and go ad-free for $1. Prefer to give a one-time tip? Click here.

    Enjoy good journalism?

    … then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has slashed advertising rates, and we need your help. Like you, we here at Raw Story believe in the power of progressive journalism. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and legal efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. And unlike other news outlets, we’ve decided to make our original content free. But we need your support to do what we do.

    Raw Story is independent. Unhinged from corporate overlords, we fight to ensure no one is forgotten.

    We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click to donate by check.

    Value Raw Story?

    … then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has slashed advertising rates, and we need your help. Like you, we believe in the power of progressive journalism — and we’re investing in investigative reporting as other publications give it the ax. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. We need your support to do what we do.

    Raw Story is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us in the future. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.

    Report typos and corrections to: corrections@rawstory.com.
    READ COMMENTS - JOIN THE DISCUSSION

    Do you approve of Biden's presidency so far?

    Allen Weisselberg is an existential threat to Trump — and his 3 oldest kids: biographer

    Bob Brigham
    March 04, 2021

    Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg represents an existential threat to former President Donald Trump -- and his three oldest children, a Trump biographer explained on CNN on Thursday.

    The New York Times is now reporting that Manhattan prosecutors are focusing on Trump's top money man, Allen Weisselberg, who, for more than two decades, served at the Trump Organization's financial gatekeeper," CNN's Brianna Keilar reported Thursday.

    For analysis, Keiler interviewed Trump biographer Tim O'Brien.

    "How central is Allen Weisselberg to the former president's dealings?" Keiler asked.

    "He's as central as anyone can be, Brianna. He grew up in the Trump Organization. Donald Trump's father, Fred Trump, hired Allen in the 1970s to become the accountant, sort of the chief accountant for Fred Trump's company. He and Donald are the same age, they grew up together in the company, and -- Donald Trump eventually made Allen his chief financial officer," O'Brien explained.

    "He knows where all the financial bodies are buried," he continued. "There wasn't a deal that went through the Trump Organization that Allen Weisselberg didn't sign off on. In that regard he was much more crucial to the president's thinking than any of his children were, and really almost any other adviser in the organization."

    "And he knows where the money is, and in the midst of a financial fraud investigation, that means he's as about, as existential a thread to the president as he could be," he explained.

    Keiler asked if Weisselberg might flip.

    "Well that question, that's the, you know, billion dollar question, Brianna, is, 'will he cooperate?' It is a classic prosecutorial tactic to begin squeezing people at the bottom of the ladder in order to get to the top, and if you get to Allen Weisselberg and he flips then you get to Donald Trump. I would suspect that there's more than just an interest in speaking to Allen Weisselberg here. He's a cog in a machine."

    "They are street smart. They have historically been loyal to one another, but are not sophisticated. If Allen Weisselberg's loyalty to Donald Trump evaporates, then you're going to see a series of other people possibly start to cooperate and that could get, put a lot of pressure on Trump and his children," said O'Brien.

    Watch:

    Tim O'Brien www.youtube.com

    Republican former congressman says GOP will continue to fan the flames of violence to rake in more cash

    Sarah K. Burris
    March 04, 2021

    Former Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-VA) said that he has little hope of the end to violent rhetoric from Republican officials because they make far too much money using it.

    Speaking to MSNBC's Katy Tur, Riggleman explained that officials like Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) are well aware of the truth around the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, but if he intends to run for reelection in 2022 he has to scare off a primary challenger.

    "I think the 'false flag' and big lies are part of the narrative for the 2022 mid-terms," said Riggleman. "And I've said a few times, we could have a real issue, right, with the GOP taking the House back based on the fact that this 'Stop the Steal' messaging works."

    He noted that a previous report about the reasoning behind a possible March 4 attack made him think that "crazy gets stuck in their own rabbit holes.

    "And I will be really blunt here, I talked to members of Congress, I was just there, and the type of fundraising is so good at the grassroots level, I don't see that language going away at all," he said. "When you look at some people running in Michigan or Texas they're still spouting a Big Lie, false-flag, conspiracy narrative. When you listen to Ron Johnson, that's idiotic, right? That's just a brain cell issue, or you're pandering for some kind of fundraising, or you're still some kind of Trumpophile that can't seem to get out of your own way mentally."

    He went on to say that he can't see how people can look at data and call Jan. 6 a "false flag operation."

    "We released a report on this and we know there were a minimum of seven white nationalist groups that were involved," said Riggleman. "And there is people right now that you're interviewing, like Ben and the others, they actually know, without a doubt, that individuals are going to continue to push this. This has gone well beyond the Messiah of President Trump now, this has been institutionalized" and "government is not to be trusted. And now the rehash of the 'New World Order' coming out and I'm not as optimistic as other people that this is going away any time soon."

    See the interview below:


    Ron Johnson is having "a brain cell issue": Ex-GOP Congressman www.youtube.com

    Banksy takes credit for work at Oscar Wilde jail

    Agence France-Presse
    March 04, 2021

    Street artist Banksy on Thursday claimed responsibility for a painting on the wall of a former British prison that once held playwright Oscar Wilde.

    The artwork shows a prisoner escaping on a rope made of bedsheets tied to a typewriter.

    The elusive artist confirmed he was responsible in a video posted on his Instagram account.

    The footage shows the artist carrying out the painting, and parodies the cult instructional videos of late US artist Bob Ross.

    It opens with a clip of Ross saying: "Hello, I'm Bob Ross. I'd like to welcome you to The Joy Of Painting.

    "Got all your materials out, ready to do a fantastic painting with me? Good."

    The action then switches to Banksy as he executes his work, while a soundtrack of friendly advice from Ross plays over the top.

    Reading Prison closed to prisoners in 2013 and is best known for housing Wilde during his two-year sentence of hard labour for "gross indecency".

    His final work "The Ballad of Reading Gaol" made the case for prison reform.

    The Ministry of Justice, the listed building's owner, is set to decide this month whether to turn into an arts venue.

    © 2021 AFP

     
    Trending
    Latest
    Videos

    ‘It’s not fair!’ Capitol rioter who violated Pelosi’s office screams at judge over pretrial jailing

    'DC is dissolved': Trump supporters freak out because they can't properly read Google Maps

    Tom Cotton warns he is holding up Merrick Garland's nomination

    Three Republicans accused of ethics violation after they attempted to alter colleague’s votes

    BUSTED: Missouri teachers under fire after spelling out a racial slur with oversized Scrabble letters

    Trump family tries to unload Palm Beach house across from Mar-a-Lago at four times the purchase price

    Russian state media depressed over Trump’s election loss and almost coming to blows on-air: report

    Former Trump officials say they're struggling to pay rent after lump-sum vacation payouts get delayed

    QAnon-evangelical crossbreeding is creating America’s own ‘al-Qaeda’ radicals: experts

    Allen Weisselberg is an existential threat to Trump — and his 3 oldest kids: biographer

    Republican former congressman says GOP will continue to fan the flames of violence to rake in more cash

    Banksy takes credit for work at Oscar Wilde jail

    ‘We’re about facts around here’: Jen Psaki smacks down Texas' Governor Abbott

    The 'Dutch Trump' crashes and burns after going all in on COVID conspiracies

    Galapagos island gets 36 endangered giant tortoises

    Congress can completely destroy all of Trump’s deregulation in one action — but they better hurry

    'I'm not going to risk getting myself killed': Madison Cawthorn’s very bad week isn't enough to coax his 2020 challenger to run against him again

    Trump's aversion to long flights may interfere with his vendetta against Lisa Murkowski: report

    WATCH: Jen Psaki delivers brutal response when asked if Trump deserves credit for vaccine rollout

    GOP's Marsha Blackburn heaps praise on Neanderthals after Biden comments: 'They're protectors of their family!'

    West Virginia Republican levels Texas Gov. Abbott for acting 'macho' and dumping mask mandate

    WATCH: QAnon Shaman's mom defends her son's honor while spewing conspiracy theories about 2020 election

    Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick: Joe Biden's son is the real 'Neanderthal' because his name is 'Hunter'

    GOP's Murkowski announces she will vote yes on Deb Haaland as first Native American Interior secretary

    One-year-old baby shot in the head by Texas cop in criminal chase gone horribly wrong

    'QAnon Shaman' says he's innocent because he stopped Capitol attackers from 'stealing muffins'

    This longtime Trump associate holds the key to pursuing criminal charges against him: NYT's Haberman

     
     

    Copyright © 2021 Raw Story Media, Inc. PO Box 21050, Washington, D.C. 20009 | Masthead | Privacy Policy | For corrections or concerns, please email corrections@rawstory.com.

    Manage Preferences

    Thanks for your support!

    Did you enjoy Raw Story this year? Join us! We're offering RawStory ad-free for 15% off - just $2 per week. From now until March 15th.

    ‘You don’t have to normalize insurrection’: CBS News slammed for ‘complicit’ jailhouse interview of ‘QAnon Shaman’

    Trump lashes out at Wall Street Journal after it urges GOP to dump him

    How vaccines became ammunition in global diplomacy

    Close
    Copy link