The Crack-Up

On Tuesday, Slate published an interview (link here) with the Yale psychiatrist who alleges that two White House officials contacted her and, as she said, said "that they were scared of President Trump’s behavior and felt he was mentally unraveling."

I thought this part of the interview, toward the end, when she talks about Trump unraveling before our eyes right now is particularly insightful:

"The increasing frequency in lying, the increasingly belligerent tweets, his inability to vary his responses to situations. For example, he cannot let a criticism go. He has to fabricate reality to situations that are distressing to him. And the thing about pathology, as opposed to normal reaction, is pathology actually becomes more rigid and more predictable. A healthy individual might be able to vary their response, especially if it’s strategy. They can choose to act differently if something is not working. Whereas pathology tends to become more and more rigid as it worsens. And what we’re seeing is simple repetition now, and worsening, greater frequency of his poor coping mechanisms."

America is not the first country with a possible madman as head of state. The historical record is full of precedents. Some countries unraveled as a result.

But others had sufficient checks and balances to curb the head of state's madness. Fortunately, America has those, too.

A Congress that is not entirely controlled by Republicans would go a long way to adding an additional layer of protection. That's why voting in the November midterms is essential. If even only one of the two houses changes parties, the President will be much more restrained.

And restraint is the best thing for a madman.