Yes, Trump Will Get More Reckless as His Power Ebbs

A few TPM readers responded to yesterday’s post describing Trump as the “weak horse,” arguing that Trump’s waning power makes him more dangerous, not less. I agree. Above all. What is “more dangerous” is a subjective question, with different types of hazards and different time horizons. Overall, this is clearly a good thing since Trump’s loss of power and the eventual defeat of his movement are good things. Although this is far from a certainty, it is becoming more and more likely. But Trump will not act quietly. We have known this since January 6. No president wants to see his popularity decline or the loss of power that comes with it. But Trump’s binary mental world emphasizes everything more precisely and more draconianly. In his world, you are the punisher or the punished, the dominant or the dominated. Loss of power means personal political peril. That’s how it works in his own head, and to a large extent, Trump’s actions have made this all-or-nothing world a reality around him.