Trump Can’t Hide His Most Serious Illness |
The 2026 America the Beautiful pass features George Washington and President Donald Trump. (screenshot via Department of Interior)
When critics suggest potential illnesses President Donald Trump might have, they point to evidence of a possible ailment. They notice bruises on his hands, swollen joints, dozing off during televised meetings, and his rambling, disjointed speeches. However, they never identify the one hallmark of a serious illness that he had shown even before he became president.
It is a mental condition officially defined and diagnosed by the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). Research suggests that between 1.3 and 13 million American adults may have it, with most being male. The Cleveland Clinic’s study found that having NPD involves an excessive need to impress others or feel important, which can lead to harmful behaviors toward others.
A first response to this possibility might be, “So what? Past presidents have been narcissistic.” However, NPD goes beyond a few stereotypical behaviors or attitudes. As explained by Sandra Silva, senior editor at Health Line Media, it’s a matter of continually distorting reality that hinders making rational decisions. But it is never a personal choice; like other illnesses, it cripples one’s ability to function normally.
The most recent example of a president accused of being a narcissist was Richard Nixon, who exhibited at least two of the nine symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder: a willingness to exploit others and fantasies about deserving success. Both symptoms are found in Trump’s behavior.
The first trait is seen when Nixon pressured Donald Alexander, the Republican he appointed as the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, to investigate those on Nixon’s notorious list of political enemies. Alexander refused, and although Nixon failed to get him fired, Nixon agreed to retain him when existing protocols did not allow it.
In comparison, Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to overturn that state’s voter results so he could win the 2020 election. Raffensperger refused because Trump’s claims of voter fraud were not found, even by Trump’s own campaign. In retaliation for non-compliance, Trump filed four lawsuits against Raffensperger but withdrew them after failing to provide evidence and refusing to testify under oath.
Nevertheless, Trump ignored all evidence and continued to state that he had “won by hundreds of thousands of votes.” Trump then endorsed Representative Jody Hice as a primary challenger to Raffensperger’s re-election, saying he had more integrity than Raffensperger. Hice tried to get the U.S. Senate to object to Georgia’s electoral votes, but no senator joined his objection, so Congress did not debate it.
In the second expression of an NPD trait, Nixon privately believed his loss to John F. Kenndy was a stolen election and quietly encouraged Republican efforts to investigate irregularities. Nevertheless, three days after the election, he declared he would not contest it, saying that he wanted our American tradition of holding elections shouldn’t be marred by “wrangling over the results” through court challenges.
In comparison, Trump and his allies filed 60 lawsuits challenging election processes, vote counting, and vote certification in 9 swing........