In January, I noticed a bumper sticker on an SUV parked in my neighborhood: Trump 2020: Make Liberals Cry Again.
I grumbled, but reassured myself that Trump would not win in Oregon.
A second sticker appeared in March. Donald Trump 2020: Finally, Someone With Balls.
This slogan confirmed my thoughts about the first: Toxic masculinity underlies much of President Trump’s appeal. Liberals cry, but real men have the balls to battle.
For many years, I worked as a psychologist treating abusive men. I established a feminist-informed treatment program for court-mandated batterers. Most of the men I treated had a patriarchal belief system and thought they were entitled to certain privileges because they were men. I especially worried about patriarchal men with narcissism and antisocial behavior, since they became aggressive quickly.
President Trump reminds me of them.
Antisocial narcissists have an elevated likelihood of killing spouses. My experiences as a psychologist suggest that for every abusive man who murders, there are dozens more who dominate while stopping short of murder. Some of the most powerful abusers I saw were rarely physically violent; like Trump, they relied on intimidation, verbal abuse and economic blackmail.
Psychologist John Gartner has famously concluded that Trump is an antisocial narcissist, while therapist Diane Jhueck noted how the powers of the presidency amplify Trump’s danger. Trump’s narcissism has been well-documented: His decisions are based primarily on self-interest, his attacks on others motivated by …
PUBLISHED 5/22/2020 by Thomas Smurthwaite
Read the rest of this great article at:
https://msmagazine.com/2020/05/22/donald-trump-reminds-me-of-the-abusive-men-i-treated/