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Episode Description
Your favorite psychologists, John Gartner and Harry Segal, review Trump’s disastrous Alaska summit and marvel at how he has reverted to Putin’s absurd Ukraine talking points. They also speak with Richard Wood, eminent clinical psychologist and expert on malignant narcissism, who shares his insights on Trump’s pathology.
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We open with a “therapy session” framework—our way of inviting you into a collective examination of how Trump’s behavior has infiltrated our daily lives. Too often, political coverage tip-toes around psychological insights. Not here. We argue that to understand Trump’s volatility, his tantrums, and his rule-by-instinct style, you have to start with his inner life.
Dr. Woods steps in to define malignant narcissism: a toxic cocktail of grandiosity, ruthlessness, and paranoia. He walks us through examples—obsessive self-aggrandizement, zero empathy for victims, and a ferocious need to dominate. When you hear Trump lob insults or bully subordinates, that’s not business as usual. It’s the playbook of someone for whom status and control override every other impulse.
Too many pundits tiptoe around Trump’s slurred speeches, jumbled tweets, and off-script rants. We don’t. We break down the warning signs of cognitive fragility—memory lapses, word-salad tangents, even motor-skill stumbles. These aren’t just gaffes; they’re red flags that a leader who can’t stay on message is a risk to national security.
Why do millions still cheer him on? In a frank discussion, we and Dr. Woods explore how Trump transforms fear into solidarity. His promises of vengeance and identity-based appeals speak to grievances deeper than policy. When democracy feels abstract, demagoguery feels personal—and that’s how authoritarian figures like Trump cement loyalty.
We draw parallels to his moves in Washington itself: weaponizing local police, twisting museum exhibits to sanitize his image, and rewriting history to suit his narrative. It’s not accidental. It’s an orchestrated strategy to freeze dissent and manufacture consent.
This episode doesn’t leave you helpless. We outline concrete steps—peer education, fact-based conversations, and refusing to normalize destructive behavior cloaked in charismatic populism. Psychological insight isn’t therapy; it’s ammunition. It helps us name the tactics, defang the threats, and reclaim our public life.
If you want to see past the tweets and the rallies and understand the man behind the façade, tune in to Shrinking Trump wherever you get your podcasts. Let’s sharpen our collective lens—because democracy demands more than headline-chasing. It demands that we understand, confront, and ultimately shrink the power of rulers unfit to lead.
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