Selfishness

Much has been written Trump’s motivations and what his supporters find attractive about him. One of the leading explanations for their continued support is that he is a father figure, a leader. I would like to offer another, perhaps simpler, perspective.

Donald Trump is extremely selfish.

Many of us would claim that extreme selfishness is a reprehensible personality trait. Donald Trump disagrees. He believes that extreme selfishness is an admirable personality trait.

He equates selfishness with intelligence and success. He thinks winners are smart and make deals which maximize the benefits to themselves. Losers are chumps; they’re so stupid and gullible that they care about other people and even people who haven’t even been born yet.

He says he loves America. Of course he does, people here are almost completely free to be selfish.

He wants to make America great again. He wants people to be able to have even more power and money, like the robber barons the anti-trust laws were written to control.

He admires authoritarians and oligarchs like Putin and Kim Jong-un. Their most prominent personality trait is extreme selfishness.

I think many of his supporters also think extreme selfishness is an admirable personality trait.

They don’t just admire his wealth and women. They admire what they might call his strength of character. They envy his ability to shrug off social norms and live a life unfettered by inhibitions. Trump’s supporters admire his courage to do and say whatever the hell he wants; they wish they could do the same.

To be fair, who among us has not wished we were brave enough to do whatever the hell we want?

But there’s a reason we don’t. We grew up.

Children are selfish. But most people, as they grow up and become adults, realize that civil behavior, following society’s rules, is good for us and our communities.

Fairness feels good. If you treat someone fairly, it feels noble and you can rightly feel a little proud. If you are treated fairly, you feel grateful. And, in a fair deal, everyone gets something they want.

Selfishness feels bad. When we behave selfishly, we know we’ve harmed another person and feel ashamed and embarrassed. If we have been taken advantage of by an unscrupulous person, we feel hurt. In a bad deal, one person gets what they want and the other person gets screwed.

Who doesn’t feel bad when they treat people selfishly? People like Donald Trump don’t.