[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 12, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E30-E31]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THE PRESIDENT IS MENTALLY UNFIT
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HON. JOHN B. LARSON
of connecticut
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, January 12, 2021
Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Madam Speaker, we recently witnessed an
unprecedented attack on the Capitol as a joint session of Congress
convened to count and certify the Electoral College votes. This was an
attack on not only the hallowed halls of the Capitol, but on the very
heart and soul of our democracy: it was an attack on the peaceful
transition of power.
There can be no doubt who instigated the insurrectionists and incited
them to domestic terrorism. The President of the United States called
on his supporters to march on the Capitol. He told them: ``We're
probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them because
you'll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show
strength, and you have to be strong.''
In 2017, Dr. Harold Schwartz wrote this op-ed, published in the
Hartford Courant. In it, he describes several mental disorders that may
be applicable to the President. It has proven to be remarkably
prescient and foreshadowed the events of January 6, 2021. I include it
in the Record here so that Members and the public may draw their own
conclusions about the President's fitness to serve out the remainder of
his term. I, for one, believe that the President is a malignant
narcissist lacking the capacity to discharge the duties of his office
and call on the Vice President to invoke the 25th Amendment.
I'm Not Diagnosing Trump: Just Saying . . .
(By Harold I. Schwartz)
Psychiatrists are prohibited by the so-called Goldwater
Rule from diagnosing public figures they have not personally
assessed. This prohibition followed the 1964 election, when
Barry Goldwater was the Republican candidate for president
and felt by many to have extreme views. He was castigated in
a survey of American psychiatrists and unfairly labeled with
virtually every diagnosis in the book.
Fearful of the implications of diagnosing from afar, the
American Psychiatric Association prohibited this activity to
protect the credibility of American psychiatry and the
privacy, dignity and confidentiality of public figures. On
the one hand, the prohibition makes sense. On the other, it's
a gag rule preventing psychiatrists from contributing to the
conversation.
It may not be necessary, however, for a psychiatrist to
offer a diagnosis to join the discussion of just what is (or
is not) wrong with Donald Trump. Mere information may
suffice. In this spirit I bring you, straight from the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth
Edition (the DSM-V, psychiatry's diagnostic bible), the
descriptions of several mental disorders. Far be it
[[Page E31]]
from me to say they apply to Mr. Trump. You may decide.
Let's start in the Personality Disorders section. There are
many disorders within this category and their features often
mix and match. Here are the characteristics, right out of the
DSM-V of someone with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (You
only need five to qualify):
1. Has a grandiose sense of self-importance (e.g.,
exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be
recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)
2. Is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success,
power, brilliance, beauty or ideal love.
3. Believes that he or she is ``special'' and unique and
can only be understood by, or should associate with, other
special or high-status people (or institutions).
4. Requires excessive admiration
5. Has a sense of entitlement (i.e., unreasonable
expectations of especially favorable treatment or automatic
compliance with his or her expectations
6. Is interpersonally exploitative
7. Lacks empathy: is unwilling to recognize or identify
with the feelings and needs of others.
8. Is often envious of others or believes that others are
envious of him or her.
9. Shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes.
Another interesting personality diagnosis is Antisocial
Personality Disorder, the technical term for the more
commonly used psychopathy. I have selected criteria that you
may find most salient (you only need three to qualify):
Deceitfulness, as indicated by repeated lying, use of
aliases, or conning others for personal profit or pleasure.
Impulsivity or failure to plan ahead.
Irritability and aggressiveness, as indicated by repeated
physical fights or assaults.
Consistent irresponsibility, as indicated by repeated
failure to sustain consistent work behavior or honor
financial obligations.
Lack of remorse, as indicated by being indifferent to or
rationalizing having hurt, mistreated or stolen from another
While it's not a formal diagnosis, people who combine very
severe narcissism with severe psychopathy are said to have
Malignant Narcissism syndrome--it is the very worst forms of
narcissism and psychopathy combined. You really don't want to
have a malignant narcissist in your life.
And because I've already suggested that elements of the
various personality disorders often combine, here are a few
of the features of Paranoid Personality Disorder that may be
of interest: suspicion that others are harming or deceiving
him or her, reading hidden demeaning or threatening meanings
into benign remarks or events, persistently bearing grudges
(unforgiving of perceived injuries), quick to counterattack
to perceived attacks on his or her character. To qualify for
any of the personality disorder diagnoses, the individual
must either be distressed by these characteristics or, in
some way, dysfunctional. Very successful people can be
dysfunctional in many aspects of their lives.
Still another diagnosis is Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity
Disorder. Just a few of the criteria for this include: the
failure to give close attention to details, difficulty
sustaining attention to tasks, an avoidance of tasks that
require sustained mental effort and easy distractability.
The definition of delusional thinking might be of interest.
Delusions are defined as fixed false beliefs. But a fixed
belief is not a delusion, as odd as that may seem to many, if
it is accepted and shared by the social cultural group the
believer finds himself in. In a severe personality disorder
it may be difficult to distinguish a fantastical wish from a
delusion. But we are splitting definitional hairs here.
I must reiterate, lest I find myself at odds with my
professional organization: I have never interviewed Donald
Trump and I am not diagnosing him. I am merely directing your
attention to information that anyone can find in the
diagnostic manual. It would be improper of me, as a
psychiatrist, to do more. On the other hand, you don't need a
psychiatrist . . . er, a weatherman, to know which way the
wind blows.
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