Thoughts on the Trump presidency

[The exile]

So - one of his 365 achievements in 365 days is getting negative net migration. Quite an achievement- turning a country which more people wNt to leave than come to!

 

[ainsworth74]

I do think that something has happened in the last few weeks with Trump. His second administration has been awful from the beginning in a way that the first way around wasn't even though it was, objectively, terrible particularly by the end but we're at the end of year one and it's already far worse than anything that happened in the first administration.

But that feels like to me as if it's accelerated in just the last few weeks. Venezuela, ICE going even harder, Greenland, etc etc. To me it feels like something has happened recently that's got him acting in an even more belligerent manner than the norm that had been established in 2025.

I'm not sure whether it's health related (he's obviously got dementia but has it gotten worse suddenly? Is that a thing that can happen?), perhaps he's confronting the reality of his own mortality more and more (so wants to legacy build ASAP?), or maybe some people behind the scenes have finally said no to something and he knows they have power to make it stick and this has set of his narcissistic psychopathy (leavened with dementia) to a whole new level (perhaps they said no to invading Greenland?). Or perhaps some combination of all of them!

But all of this feels like a different tone to how things were even a month ago (and they weren't exactly sunshine and puppies then!).

 

[Mr. SW]

I suspect mental decline doesn't proceed in a straight line.

 

[kermit]

"I wanted to call it the Gulf of Trump"

 

[najaB]

But that feels like to me as if it's accelerated in just the last few weeks. Venezuela, ICE going even harder, Greenland, etc etc. To me it feels like something has happened recently that's got him acting in an even more belligerent manner than the norm that had been established in 2025.

*cough* Epstein *cough*

 

[SHD]

Let's not attack Newsom too much, it's people like him who can save the USA from itself.

Hardly surprising he has strong words on the matter, given that his country is being brought down by its leadership.

I wouldn’t put much faith in Newsom to save a failed chili stew, let alone the USA. Why doesn’t he use his strong words in his own yard?

 

[ainsworth74]

*cough* Epstein *cough*

Yes I suppose that's possibly another factor in amongst all this!

 

[najaB]

Why doesn’t he use his strong words in his own yard?

What do you mean? He's probably more critical of the current administration than any other Democrat.

 

[Gloster]

*cough* Epstein *cough*

‘Oh, but nobody’s bothered about that little matter any longer, not that there’s anything to be bothered about. Let’s not waste any more time or money on it.’

 

[sor]

over an hour of nonsense distilled down to the question people actually wanted answered, to which he replied "you'll find out"

 

[YorkshireBear]

All this about no one coming to their aid. Aren't the US in the only country to trigger article 5?

 

[SHD]

What do you mean? He's probably more critical of the current administration than any other Democrat.

Then he should channel that vigorous energy and acute criticism towards persuading Republican senators to grow a spine rather than accusing European leaders of Chamberlaining and Daladierring. Or building a credible strategy for the democrats.

Again, I’m not saying he’s totally wrong in his characterization of European leaders, I’m saying that it comes across as a cheap way to catch attention rather than a genuine persuasion effort.

 

[najaB]

Then he should channel that vigorous energy and acute criticism towards persuading Republican senators to grow a spine rather than accusing European leaders of Chamberlaining and Daladierring. Or building a credible strategy for the democrats.

It is possible for people to do two things.

 

[brad465]

*cough* Epstein *cough*

What is perhaps a bit annoying is that several online media outlets remove any comments that make reference to that issue, including the BBC and FT. I can only assume it's a legal grey area or something.

 

[EYFanatic]

(he's obviously got dementia but has it gotten worse suddenly? Is that a thing that can happen?

I'm not medically trained, but after seeing a dramatic downturn in my Grandmother before her passing I feel qualified to say it can and most often does towards the last six/seven months of life

 

[najaB]

I'm not medically trained, but after seeing a dramatic downturn in my Grandmother before her passing I feel qualified to say it can and most often does towards the last six/seven months of life

Someone who is medically trained has estimated less than that. Unfortunately I wasn't signed in to YouTube so it's not in my history but the doctor said that he would be surprised if DJT was still able to discharge the duties of the office of President in three months time.

I shall hunt and see if I can find it.

 

[Annetts key]

I do think that something has happened in the last few weeks with Trump. His second administration has been awful from the beginning in a way that the first way around wasn't even though it was, objectively, terrible particularly by the end but we're at the end of year one and it's already far worse than anything that happened in the first administration.

But that feels like to me as if it's accelerated in just the last few weeks. Venezuela, ICE going even harder, Greenland, etc etc. To me it feels like something has happened recently that's got him acting in an even more belligerent manner than the norm that had been established in 2025.

I'm not sure whether it's health related (he's obviously got dementia but has it gotten worse suddenly? Is that a thing that can happen?), perhaps he's confronting the reality of his own mortality more and more (so wants to legacy build ASAP?), or maybe some people behind the scenes have finally said no to something and he knows they have power to make it stick and this has set of his narcissistic psychopathy (leavened with dementia) to a whole new level (perhaps they said no to invading Greenland?). Or perhaps some combination of all of them!

But all of this feels like a different tone to how things were even a month ago (and they weren't exactly sunshine and puppies then!).

I suspect mental decline doesn't proceed in a straight line.

With someone that has dementia, it doesn't.

I'm not medically trained, but after seeing a dramatic downturn in my Grandmother before her passing I feel qualified to say it can and most often does towards the last six/seven months of life

I'm not medically trained. I speak based on my experiences of dealing with my father who had dementia. The brain is a complex thing and can sometimes adapt, but for someone that has dementia, only for a while. The brain is nothing like a computer. There is more than one "path" for it to do something. It's also "analogue" in that there are degrees rather than sharp "digital" steps.

With dementia, sometimes the symptoms are far more visible on one day, but they appear almost normal the following day.

And indeed, if you don't know what to look for, and don't know the person, until the disease gets really bad, at a causal encounter, you may not even notice that an individual has a problem if they are having a good day.

Over time, the number of bad days increases and the number of good days decreases. They often become less logical and become increasingly controlled by their emotions. That includes having difficulty controlling their temper. Becoming frustrated far more easily. The other emotions are also affected.

Increasingly their vocabulary reduces and it's not just not knowing the word, or how to say it. But also it's meaning. They have difficulty having long conversations or concentrating. They find speaking more difficult.

As time goes by, the rate of degradation increases. They lose the ability to remember the names of people that they don't see very often or names of things. They often confuse people and get the wrong name. Only remembering people and names of people they interact with every day. Then they lose that. They still recognise faces, but don't know their names. That includes close family. They can no longer tell you what's wrong with them. Soon they are unable to have any kind of conversation. Eventually, it's single words, nothing more.

It all gets very sad, as they get even worse.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jan 2026 ==

Someone who is medically trained has estimated less than that. Unfortunately I wasn't signed in to YouTube so it's not in my history but the doctor said that he would be surprised if DJT was still able to discharge the duties of the office of President in three months time.

I shall hunt and see if I can find it.

It is important to note that each person with dementia degrades at slightly different rate. And that there are medications that can slow the disease in the early years. I don't know what, if any improvements in medication have been made in the last twenty years, but in the later years, the medication that was available becomes ineffective.

Most sufferers of dementia don't die from it. They instead become mentally inactive. With everything having to be done by carers (in a nursing home). They normally die from other reasons or complications.

 

[GusB]

I can't remember exactly where I saw it - probably somewhere on YouTube - but I recently saw an image of Trump with a noticeable droop on one side of his face. It may or may not have been real, but if it was real it's possible that he's had a stroke.

My late father had a stroke a few years ago and in the early days it was like having to deal with a small child. While he made a fairly good recovery, it took quite a while to persuade him that he wasn't able to do many of the things that he was once able to do. Trump is showing similar symptoms.

 

[martin butler]

Trump is really a horrible human being, He's the sort of man that would sleep with his best friend's wife, and destroy their marriage, and lives, just because he could, and would not care one bit about the damage has done, those around him, are the truely evil ones though, they are only looking for their own interests, whilst using trumps own narcissism for their own ends, or towards some greater idea, such as white supremistry in the case of Miller, and Project 2025, in the case of Vance.
Trump is in essence an angry toddler, the type that gleefully pulls the wings off insects,
I think that either he will die in office, or he will do something so stupid, that it crashes the US economy, and the people backing his regime, start to lose their money, then they will start pulling their puppet strings, and cut his, they won't care about the people, right, from wrong, it will only be when they see their money becoming worthless.

 

[devon_belle]

I shall hunt and see if I can find it.

@epistemiccrisis on YouTube has done several short analyses on it. He's a physician who used to be MAGA and estimates Trump is somewhere around stage 4 frontotemporal dementia based on things like 'sundowning' and the slurping as he loses control of his swallowing. He has also discussed the bruising on Trump's hands which could be related to an IV for his dementia. There is also a lot of evidence of a stroke or similar. He estimates 2-4 months left when comparing to his patients, but I don't know if that takes into account the best medical treatment that will be available to the president. Worth a watch, although I take it all with a pinch of salt.

It is abundantly clear Trump is profoundly unwell and definitely shouldn't be in a position of power.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jan 2026 ==

Most sufferers of dementia don't die from it.

In the case of frontotemporal dementia (see above) pneumonia is the leading cause of death, I think, because of inhalation of food/liquid into the lunds when they lose control of their swallowing.

 

[EYFanatic]

I see that Air Force 1 had to return to Andrews because of a "minor electrical fault" and they then switched not to the other 747 aircraft but to a 757 to make another attempt. Given that the reason they take the other one is for this scenario then maybe they were worried the same fault would occur

Trump Returns To Andrews After Malfunction

From the Guardian:

The US president’s plane, Air Force One, has been forced to abort its flight to Switzerland and turn back after what officials described as a “minor electrical issue”.

Donald Trump boarded another aircraft, an Air Force C-32, a modified Boeing 757 normally used for domestic trips to smaller airports, and continued his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos shortly after midnight.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said the decision to return to Washington DC on Tuesday evening had been taken shortly after departure “out of an abundance of caution”, once the crew detected the fault.

A White House pool reporter travelling with the president said the lights in the press cabin of Air Force One flickered off briefly after the aircraft became airborne, though no further explanation was provided at the time.

The two ageing jets serving as Air Force One have been in service for nearly four decades, and efforts by Boeing to deliver replacements have been beset by repeated delays.

Controversy flared in 2025 when Qatar’s ruling family presented Trump with a luxury Boeing 747-8 to be added to the presidential fleet – a gesture that drew intense scrutiny. The aircraft is presently being refitted to meet US security standards.

Speaking to reporters onboard on Tuesday night, Leavitt quipped that the Qatari jet was sounding like the “much better” option at that moment.

The unscheduled turnaround was expected to delay the president’s arrival in Davos. The meeting is overshadowed by Trump’s threat of tariffs on European countries over Greenland, which he remains determined to seize .

Trump told reporters before departing: “Let’s put it this way: it’s going to be a very interesting Davos.” Earlier, at a lengthy press briefing celebrating his first anniversary in office, he was asked how far he would be willing to go to acquire Greenland and said only: “You’ll find out.”

Members of the media after returning to Joint Base Andrews following an electrical problem on Air Force One. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
The delegation also includes the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, the White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, the deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, and the National Economic Council director, Kevin Hassett.

In February 2025, a military plane carrying Rubio to Germany had to return to Washington because of a mechanical issue. In October a military plane carrying the defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, had to make an emergency landing in Britain due to a crack in the windshield.

Technical problems on the presidential jet are rare due to meticulous maintenance. In 2006 the primary Air Force One suffered a mechanical malfunction while on the tarmac in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, forcing George W Bush to board the backup aircraft, a Boeing 757, to fly to his next destination in Indonesia.

 

[Bantamzen]

I see that Air Force 1 had to return to Andrews because of a "minor electrical fault" and they then switched not to the other 747 aircraft but to a 757 to make another attempt. Given that the reason they take the other one is for this scenario then maybe they were worried the same fault would occur

Trump Returns To Andrews After Malfunction

So it's not just their president that is malfunctioning?

 

[jupiter]

My first suspicion was that the plane was ok but the person not.

 

[ainsworth74]

Thanks all for sharing their experiences with dementia as it's not a condition with which I've had direct contact with in my own family (it tends to be strokes or heart conditions that get us in later years).

 

[najaB]

I see that Air Force 1 had to return to Andrews because of a "minor electrical fault" and they then switched not to the other 747 aircraft but to a 757 to make another attempt. Given that the reason they take the other one is for this scenario then maybe they were worried the same fault would occur

Trump Returns To Andrews After Malfunction

It's also possible that the other VC-25A wasn't available due to maintenance.

 

[ainsworth74]

It's also possible that the other VC-25A wasn't available due to maintenance.

Yes that's my understanding, the other VC-25 (USAF speak for the pair 747s which usually do Air Force 1 duty for anyone playing along at home) is down for maintenance hence the less prestigious replacement.

 

[AndrewE]

Given that the orange one is getting increasingly unhinged (and apparently not being restrained by anyone) I found the article https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/21/trump-us-stranglehold-eu-uk-energy-supply-lng worrying:

"The UK is affected by exactly the same geopolitical and economic vulnerabilities as the European Economic Area, and in fact it is physically and economically fully integrated in the European gas grid and gas market,” he said.

“Since the invasion of Ukraine, the EU has paid a high price for its reliance on Russia in energy trade. The US seemed to be a reliable alternative. Historically, interferences by the US government in gas markets to exert pressure on Europe were considered unthinkable. In the current geopolitical context, this assumption is questionable.”

Another snippet I heard on R4 or the World Service was his stream-of-consciousness rambling about the situation if his tariffs were declared unlawful. I thought he was acknowledging that it might happen, he said he might have to impose sanctions (rather than tariffs) instead - but also said that if they had to pay back all the tariffs collected so far (which have already been used) then it would be very unpleasant for a lot of people. I took that to be an implied threat that it would hurt the little people whose taxes would have to cover the bill.

 

[DelW]

I see that Air Force 1 had to return to Andrews because of a "minor electrical fault" and they then switched not to the other 747 aircraft but to a 757 to make another attempt. Given that the reason they take the other one is for this scenario then maybe they were worried the same fault would occur

Trump Returns To Andrews After Malfunction

It's also possible that the other VC-25A wasn't available due to maintenance.

Would a 757, being smaller, have a wider choice of diversion runways in the event of an onboard emergency?

 

[AndrewE]

So - one of his 365 achievements in 365 days is getting negative net migration. Quite an achievement- turning a country which more people want to leave than come to!

which reminds me of the joke in NZ about their fellows who emigrate to Australia: It's the only situation where emigration increases the average IQ of both countries!

 

[edwin_m]

Would a 757, being smaller, have a wider choice of diversion runways in the event of an onboard emergency?

I guess so in theory, but there's a good selection of 747-capable diversionary airports for transatlantic routes (limited mainly by availability of dry land to build them on) and in Europe.

What might be more of a concern is that a 2-engine 757 would almost certainly have to divert immediately if it lost an engine. A 747 on three engines might be able to continue - not normal practice but Air Force One might be different.