Other articles in this section could understandably give the impression that I’m 100% pro Trump. If it were true, that would be fine. But it's not. I have very mixed feelings about Donald Trump. For the sake of personal integrity, and potential friendships with progressive liberal thinkers, I want to take this opportunity to describe what I consider to be some of the negative aspects of Trump and the Trump presidency. I'll keep it brief.
In his earlier life, including during his 2016 presidential campaign, he was clearly a womanizer. The most infamous quote is from a hot mic capture where he talks about “Grab ‘em by the …”
Trump learned early in his real estate and construction career in NYC that bullying and intimidation can work. Wherever he learned it, he seems to use it regularly. Barbara Corcoran talks about it here CNN Interview, 2016. His trade policies also bear it out.
I think even many sophisticated Republicans find this aspect of Trump particularly nauseating. Here’s an example from just last week as I write this: White House Correspondence Dinner, July 24, 2026"
Democratic politicians tend to lie by telling truths that they know will be misleading to the average voter.1 Trump, on the other hand, tells straight-up lies that have little or no truth to them.
Here is a clear, objective example: that he eliminated taxes on social security. Trump Addresses the Nation, July 16, 2026
In reality there is no change whatsoever in the formula for calculating the percent of social security income that is subject to federal taxes. What Trump did was sign into law the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) to give seniors age 65 or older an additional $6,000 deduction if earning less than $75,000 per year. It starts to phase out for earnings above $75,000. It expires after tax year 2028.
This extra deduction may reduce social security taxes because it lowers one's modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). However, it only fully eliminates social security taxes for someone who without that additional $6,000 deduction would have had a combined income (CI = (MAGI + half of social security benefits)) of between $25,000 - $31,000. That's a narrow window and not much income. Below $25,000 they would not have paid taxes on SS anyway. Between $31,000 - $40,000 they still pay taxes on up to 50% of their SS benefits, and above $40,000 they still pay taxes on up to 85% of their SS benefits. Note, the actual CI brackets and formula are unchanged. I simply shifted the brackets upward by $6,000 to show the result with the extra $6,000 deduction. Double these numbers if married filing jointly.
I think we'd all agree that most politicians lie, and that some politicians have been womanizers and worse. I don't think that there has been a president in history, though, that has been as much of a bully, braggart, and habitual liar, as Trump.2 It has become so prolific that it is hard to listen to. There is a method to the madness. (See Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don't Matter by Scott Adams). However, for many Americans, it is depressing and humiliating to hear the leader of the free world consistently talk this way. In my view, the net political gain, if any, is not worth the price.
If Trump's style is what it took to win in 2016 and 2024, then that is one thing. I don't think the bar was set very high, though. I think Trump probably could have won the elections by more votes, and received more support during his terms, with the same policies but a more mature demeanor. But who knows.
1. Causes of Food Price Inflation > It Is Not Due to Price Gouging!, and On Wealth > Billionaires' Percent of Wealth
2. This would make a good stand-up comedy bit. In Trump's voice and mannerisms, the comedian brags about being a bragger, "I'm the biggest bragger and exaggerator there's ever been. Possibly in all of history. Everybody says it. Some don't say it to my face, because I'm the boss. But everybody knows it. Oh yeah ... they know it. I'm very good at it. Some say ... maybe ... the best ever."