The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast - 492. A Psychological Analysis of Trump’s Personality by Dr. Jordan B. Peterson

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00:00:30.000 I suppose I have had the same problems with once and maybe again President Donald J. Trump

00:00:49.340 that are shared by many.

00:00:51.500 It wasn't obvious to me at all that his first shot at the leadership of the world's most powerful country

00:00:58.160 was anything other than a brilliant and unorthodox marketing scheme.

00:01:05.120 Now be it one that succeeded beyond the wildest of imaginings.

00:01:09.360 Congratulations, Mr. President.

00:01:10.600 I knew him only at that point as a self-promoting, bombastic, quintessentially American-type celebrity

00:01:22.460 reminiscent in my imagination of Colonel Tom Parker,

00:01:27.180 the morally ambivalent, although indubitably successful, promoter of Elvis Presley.

00:01:32.420 However, Trump made a name for himself in the difficult business of construction

00:01:38.280 where, particularly in cities such as New York and Chicago,

00:01:42.620 all manner of corruption and trouble had to be managed.

00:01:46.900 A challenging matter to keep the projects going on time and within budget.

00:01:51.580 Anyone who's ever undertaken a renovation of any magnitude knows how badly such things can spiral out of control

00:01:59.060 without diligent devotion of time and attention.

00:02:03.140 He managed, while doing so, to make himself quite famous.

00:02:07.400 Another feat that is by no means as simple as those who have never done it might imagine.

00:02:13.000 Somebody who was at the Michael Jackson concert in New York said,

00:02:18.600 when you were seated, you got the loudest applause.

00:02:21.820 People stood up and roared and cheered.

00:02:23.960 So maybe there was something to him on the diligence, attention and negotiation front

00:02:28.860 that belied his mere success as a celebrity.

00:02:32.280 After that, of course, he was co-producer and host of the reality shows

00:02:36.920 The Apprentice and The Celebrity Apprentice.

00:02:39.800 These were highly successful and for a long time,

00:02:43.700 particularly by legacy media TV standards,

00:02:46.720 running more than a decade from 2004 to 2015.

00:02:51.560 He's also the author of 19 books, collaborating with various ghostwriters,

00:02:56.420 and has been involved in a true variety of other business enterprises.

00:03:00.920 This history of entrepreneurial activity,

00:03:04.080 combined with his successful bids for attention,

00:03:06.780 speaks to two of President Trump's cardinal personality features.

00:03:11.060 He is extremely extroverted.

00:03:13.940 That is, both assertive and enthusiastic,

00:03:17.960 although more particularly the former rather than the latter.

00:03:22.180 And also at least relatively high in trait openness,

00:03:26.200 which is the single best predictor of entrepreneurial slash creative activity

00:03:30.980 and prowess after general intelligence.

00:03:33.900 This makes him high in the personality meta-trait of plasticity,

00:03:39.320 which is characterized primarily by the capacity to change, grow and transform.

00:03:46.780 Something quite evident in the case of Trump,

00:03:49.220 who is a very dynamic individual indeed, particularly given his age.

00:03:54.680 Many people have been set in concrete with regard to their essential being

00:03:59.740 by the time they're 30, not Trump.

00:04:04.160 He reinvents himself constantly,

00:04:06.720 and with a high degree of continual success.

00:04:10.700 That can happen by chance once, perhaps twice.

00:04:15.020 But if it is sustained across many decades,

00:04:18.360 there is something substantive and real at work.

00:04:21.380 I also followed the Donald with great amusement on Twitter

00:04:25.080 during his presidential run and afterward when he was in office,

00:04:29.720 before he was turfed so scandalously by the progressive good thinkers

00:04:34.200 who infested the platform,

00:04:36.320 and who must be commended on their arrogance,

00:04:39.240 presumption and sheer gall.

00:04:42.080 The man has a devastating and underappreciated,

00:04:45.560 at least by the legacy leaders of opinion,

00:04:48.040 and sense of humor, although it is also somewhat ruthless.

00:04:52.920 I own a very comical book,

00:04:54.800 The Collected Poems of Donald J. Trump,

00:04:57.720 available for purchase at the Daily Wire website, by the way,

00:05:01.540 which compiles his most memorable tweets and declarations

00:05:04.720 from 2009 to 2019

00:05:07.560 into beautiful library edition hardback form.

00:05:12.340 It is a ridiculously funny tome.

00:05:14.780 I believe that deeper consideration of this proclivity

00:05:18.600 for the viciously funny

00:05:19.920 is also useful in shedding more general light

00:05:23.240 on Trump's admittedly complex personality.

00:05:26.960 First, we should fairly note

00:05:29.740 that dictatorial types,

00:05:32.800 a category which his enemies insist he falls into,

00:05:36.000 are generally not known for their sense of humor.

00:05:39.680 People were imprisoned in the Stalinist Soviet Union

00:05:42.920 for being the first to stop applauding

00:05:45.180 after a speech by the great leader.

00:05:48.620 Criticism was absolutely out of the question

00:05:51.660 and certainly not forthcoming from the top.

00:05:55.360 I've also never encountered a commendium

00:05:57.640 of the witty and amusing things said by Adolf Hitler

00:06:01.520 or Fidel Castro or Chairman Mao.

00:06:05.760 Trump does have a surprisingly thin skin in some settings,

00:06:09.460 but he can take a joke as well as tell one.

00:06:13.440 He was roasted on Comedy Central in 2011,

00:06:17.220 bandied back and forth self-deprecatingly

00:06:19.860 several times with David Letterman.

00:06:22.680 He even made a joke about getting wood

00:06:24.760 during his presidential debate with Joe Biden.

00:06:27.840 And, you know, we knock on wood

00:06:29.600 wherever we may have wood

00:06:30.740 that I'm in very good health.

00:06:32.620 I just want...

00:06:33.240 I don't think he could help himself.

00:06:34.880 And I truly like that.

00:06:37.380 He's rough in his jokes,

00:06:39.540 but no more say than Bill Burr.

00:06:42.240 You can't hit women.

00:06:43.260 You can't.

00:06:43.700 You honestly cannot.

00:06:44.520 You ever see how they fall?

00:06:45.520 They fall like toddlers.

00:06:47.140 You know?

00:06:48.120 And is it not the case

00:06:49.500 that a certain degree of harshness

00:06:51.000 is necessary for serious comedy?

00:06:54.540 Understanding and appreciating this

00:06:56.400 helps us in comprehending

00:06:58.040 one of Trump's more remarkable features,

00:07:00.660 his serious attractiveness to the working class.

00:07:03.660 This is something particularly made evident

00:07:06.160 in his ability to easily banter

00:07:08.140 with soldiers and policemen,

00:07:10.340 a rare trait among politicians,

00:07:12.460 often made nervous

00:07:13.880 by the necessity of interacting

00:07:16.020 with real people

00:07:17.320 with dangerous and difficult jobs.

00:07:20.380 Let us not forget as well

00:07:22.040 that the humor characteristic

00:07:24.160 of working class men and women

00:07:25.800 also tends toward the rough

00:07:29.020 more deeply.

00:07:30.260 This capacity to relate

00:07:32.800 the variability that is so often derided

00:07:36.120 as an appeal

00:07:36.940 to a hypothetically dangerous populism

00:07:39.360 speaks to me

00:07:40.720 of the paradoxical presence

00:07:42.260 in Trump's character

00:07:43.340 of a substantive degree

00:07:44.980 of agreeableness,

00:07:46.540 the personality trait

00:07:47.860 most associated

00:07:49.020 with empathy for other people

00:07:51.100 and one that seriously mitigates

00:07:53.220 against the more pathological elements

00:07:55.500 of the narcissism

00:07:57.160 that can be associated

00:07:59.100 with extreme extroversion.

00:08:01.200 How can this be?

00:08:03.140 Given his rough

00:08:04.060 and sometimes even bullying humor,

00:08:07.080 well, agreeableness subdivides

00:08:09.300 into the aspects

00:08:10.420 of politeness and compassion.

00:08:13.340 Although they tend to co-vary,

00:08:15.760 else would not unite

00:08:17.040 to produce the trait,

00:08:18.700 people can somewhat rarely

00:08:20.000 be high in one

00:08:21.060 and low in the other.

00:08:22.680 This makes them somewhat

00:08:24.300 harder persons to understand,

00:08:26.060 but is something

00:08:27.200 that is nonetheless possible.

00:08:29.520 I believe that Donald J

00:08:31.260 is one of those people.

00:08:33.620 He is certainly not polite.

00:08:36.080 He knows how to behave.

00:08:38.040 So he's not merely unsocialized

00:08:40.140 or accidentally gauche,

00:08:41.720 but he frequently chooses not to.

00:08:44.800 This is part of what makes him so funny.

00:08:47.060 The aforementioned Bill Burr

00:08:48.900 is not polite.

00:08:50.280 Louis C.K. is not polite.

00:08:53.580 Tony Hinchcliffe

00:08:54.580 of current Kill Tony fame

00:08:56.540 is not polite.

00:08:58.780 Many comical people will say

00:09:00.380 anything that comes into their mind,

00:09:03.140 no matter what.

00:09:04.600 If it is either true

00:09:05.800 or funny

00:09:06.920 or optimally both,

00:09:09.660 Trump definitely falls into this camp.

00:09:12.120 It's just awfully good

00:09:13.300 that someone

00:09:13.980 with the temperament of Donald Trump

00:09:16.200 is not in charge

00:09:17.200 of the law in our country.

00:09:18.720 Because you'd be in jail.

00:09:20.600 Secretary Clinton.

00:09:23.520 It is clear

00:09:25.020 from the personality

00:09:26.100 and psychopathology literature

00:09:27.820 that people tilt towards narcissism

00:09:30.540 when they are extroverted

00:09:32.260 and disagreeable.

00:09:34.480 Trump is indisputably extroverted

00:09:36.700 and extremely so.

00:09:39.100 He's also definitely low in politeness,

00:09:42.340 but he simply would not be able

00:09:43.640 to make contact

00:09:44.460 with the so-called ordinary people

00:09:47.140 that love him

00:09:48.180 if he did not care

00:09:50.080 deep in the blackness of his heart.

00:09:53.760 I have a suspicion

00:09:55.000 that his very impoliteness

00:09:56.580 is at least in part

00:09:58.500 a mask

00:09:59.320 worn to shield him

00:10:00.980 from the pain

00:10:01.840 that such caring can produce.

00:10:04.060 This would make Trump

00:10:05.540 a man whose gruffness

00:10:07.040 is there

00:10:08.120 to shield himself

00:10:09.580 from the public exposure

00:10:11.560 of his tender heart.

00:10:13.060 There are many men

00:10:14.080 who are like that.

00:10:15.860 Now,

00:10:16.400 I don't know Trump

00:10:17.720 except from a distance,

00:10:20.220 but I know many people

00:10:21.740 who do.

00:10:22.900 All of them

00:10:23.680 have spoken to me

00:10:25.480 of his hospitable nature

00:10:27.260 in private

00:10:27.840 and of his proclivity

00:10:29.860 to go out of his way

00:10:31.080 for the people around him.

00:10:32.580 This group of witnesses

00:10:34.600 to his character

00:10:35.560 includes people

00:10:36.840 who are seriously

00:10:37.720 not aligned with him

00:10:38.840 politically,

00:10:39.480 by the way.

00:10:40.560 It is also by no means obvious

00:10:42.360 that Trump

00:10:43.040 kisses up

00:10:44.200 and kicks down.

00:10:46.700 That tendency

00:10:47.460 is a very damning sign

00:10:48.920 indeed,

00:10:49.860 particularly in someone

00:10:51.080 who has genuine power

00:10:52.480 and is simply

00:10:53.780 not reported of Trump.

00:10:56.200 This is something

00:10:57.200 that appears to stand

00:10:58.860 in marked comparison

00:11:00.240 to Kamala Harris,

00:11:01.780 who is notoriously

00:11:03.420 unpopular

00:11:04.300 among her staff,

00:11:05.900 current and former,

00:11:07.520 and for precisely

00:11:08.420 that reason.

00:11:10.240 Two personality traits

00:11:11.420 remain to assess

00:11:12.420 with regard

00:11:13.480 to the former president.

00:11:15.000 That of neuroticism,

00:11:17.020 the tendency

00:11:17.780 to experience

00:11:18.540 negative emotion,

00:11:19.740 and conscientiousness,

00:11:21.160 the tendency

00:11:21.700 to work hard

00:11:22.720 and diligently

00:11:23.480 and to formulate

00:11:24.820 and keep verbal contracts.

00:11:27.260 Neuroticism

00:11:28.020 subdivides

00:11:29.180 into withdrawal,

00:11:30.220 a depression-like

00:11:31.800 proclivity

00:11:32.400 to shrink,

00:11:33.500 avoid,

00:11:34.040 and freeze

00:11:34.800 in the face

00:11:35.460 of challenge,

00:11:36.540 and volatility,

00:11:38.280 a tendency

00:11:39.000 towards what can be

00:11:40.400 an aggressive

00:11:41.040 touchiness.

00:11:42.860 Trump appears to me

00:11:43.820 to be someone

00:11:44.420 who is very difficult

00:11:45.860 to stop.

00:11:47.640 Thus,

00:11:48.100 my suspicion

00:11:48.940 is that he is

00:11:49.700 very low

00:11:50.380 in withdrawal.

00:11:51.860 What may perhaps

00:11:53.000 add to the paradox

00:11:54.120 of his personality,

00:11:55.640 however,

00:11:56.180 is a higher level

00:11:57.540 of volatility.

00:11:58.700 People can

00:11:59.440 and do

00:12:00.440 get under his skin,

00:12:02.060 as Kamala Harris

00:12:03.120 did so effectively

00:12:04.240 in her debate

00:12:05.400 with him.

00:12:05.940 In Minnesota,

00:12:06.960 she went out.

00:12:07.720 Wait a minute.

00:12:08.120 I'm talking now,

00:12:09.660 if you don't mind.

00:12:10.480 Please.

00:12:11.800 Does that sound familiar?

00:12:14.700 She went out.

00:12:17.200 He gets reactive,

00:12:18.880 but he won't quit.

00:12:20.280 And he can handle

00:12:21.500 high levels of pressure

00:12:22.860 on a continual basis.

00:12:24.420 His spontaneous response

00:12:26.920 to being nearly assassinated

00:12:28.680 provided clear

00:12:30.100 and stellar evidence

00:12:31.500 of that.

00:12:33.640 What about

00:12:34.460 conscientiousness?

00:12:36.760 Well,

00:12:37.840 Trump famously

00:12:38.760 does not drink

00:12:40.120 or use

00:12:41.080 recreational drugs,

00:12:42.740 so he prioritizes

00:12:44.240 his sobriety

00:12:45.180 and alertness

00:12:45.900 over the transient

00:12:47.200 pleasures

00:12:47.800 of substance use.

00:12:49.260 I can honestly say

00:12:50.380 I never had a beer

00:12:51.260 in my life,

00:12:51.980 okay?

00:12:52.780 Right.

00:12:53.040 It's one of my

00:12:53.900 only good traits.

00:12:55.420 I don't drink.

00:12:56.780 I also cannot see

00:12:58.100 how he could juggle

00:12:59.100 all the activities

00:13:00.260 that he has been

00:13:01.020 involved in,

00:13:02.180 even the ghostwriting-aided

00:13:03.640 production of 19 books,

00:13:05.420 not a trivial accomplishment,

00:13:07.600 to say the least,

00:13:08.520 of all his other

00:13:09.420 businesses and projects,

00:13:11.540 without a true

00:13:12.340 work ethic.

00:13:13.860 He's up at 5.30 a.m.,

00:13:16.340 a sign of the

00:13:17.880 so-called

00:13:18.520 morningness,

00:13:20.240 the preference for early

00:13:21.460 rather than late hours,

00:13:22.720 which is associated

00:13:24.020 temperamentally

00:13:24.900 with both agreeableness

00:13:26.120 and conscientiousness.

00:13:28.360 Night owls

00:13:29.180 tend as well

00:13:30.020 to be more neurotic

00:13:31.460 and to display

00:13:32.380 more symptoms

00:13:33.080 of personality disorder.

00:13:35.320 Trump seems to be

00:13:36.420 active and working,

00:13:37.900 as well as

00:13:38.380 gathering information

00:13:39.580 about the state

00:13:40.480 of things from TV,

00:13:42.280 until about midnight

00:13:43.520 each day.

00:13:45.020 That's a long

00:13:45.780 day of movement.

00:13:47.100 He has a reputation

00:13:47.960 for being a veritable

00:13:49.260 whirlwind of activity,

00:13:50.600 in general,

00:13:52.160 a description

00:13:52.740 I find credible

00:13:54.200 given his strenuous

00:13:55.580 campaign schedule,

00:13:57.120 high openness

00:13:57.780 and extroversion,

00:13:59.000 and early morning

00:13:59.980 preference,

00:14:01.380 all despite his

00:14:02.360 relatively advanced age.

00:14:04.520 On the openness

00:14:05.320 side,

00:14:06.720 I suspect Trump

00:14:07.940 is more interested

00:14:08.720 in ideas

00:14:09.460 than aesthetics.

00:14:11.100 That is two aspects

00:14:12.600 into which openness

00:14:13.520 differentiates.

00:14:14.800 He's not an intellectual,

00:14:16.640 nor an artist,

00:14:17.640 so I wouldn't place

00:14:19.040 him in the upper

00:14:19.740 echelons of the

00:14:20.920 distribution of this

00:14:21.960 trait,

00:14:22.520 but no one

00:14:23.440 average or below

00:14:24.740 devotes any attention,

00:14:26.220 for example,

00:14:26.700 to writing books,

00:14:27.840 and the number of books

00:14:28.980 the typical person

00:14:30.040 has written

00:14:30.600 is zero.

00:14:32.720 The diversity

00:14:33.340 of his career

00:14:34.000 is another testament

00:14:34.980 to his trade

00:14:35.760 openness.

00:14:37.000 Trump is clearly

00:14:38.220 a serial entrepreneur

00:14:40.040 type,

00:14:40.940 and he's also

00:14:41.560 very interested

00:14:42.320 in the entertainment

00:14:43.180 world,

00:14:44.080 for better or worse.

00:14:45.720 that gives him

00:14:47.300 commonality

00:14:48.000 with those

00:14:48.560 who inhabit

00:14:49.080 the world

00:14:49.680 of the arts,

00:14:50.680 and is part

00:14:51.760 of what makes

00:14:52.380 him a very

00:14:53.080 strange Republican

00:14:54.300 indeed.

00:14:56.000 So,

00:14:56.720 why does Trump

00:14:57.860 set so many

00:14:58.760 people on edge?

00:15:00.200 To recapitulate,

00:15:01.660 he is exceptionally

00:15:02.640 extroverted,

00:15:03.880 particularly with regard

00:15:05.200 to the aspect

00:15:05.960 of assertiveness.

00:15:07.320 He's also low

00:15:08.200 in politeness.

00:15:09.640 Now,

00:15:09.840 that combination

00:15:10.480 has some overlap

00:15:12.100 with narcissism,

00:15:13.520 not surprising,

00:15:14.520 in a figure

00:15:15.420 who has been

00:15:16.120 in the spotlight

00:15:17.020 and strived to be

00:15:18.280 for so many years.

00:15:20.500 When we think

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00:15:25.500 cool branding,

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00:15:27.640 But there's an unsung

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00:16:29.960 However,

00:16:31.360 he is genuinely

00:16:32.820 compassionate,

00:16:34.080 really quite surprisingly so,

00:16:36.920 and appears on the basis

00:16:38.320 of his behavior

00:16:39.200 to be relatively

00:16:40.340 or perhaps even

00:16:41.720 markedly conscientious.

00:16:44.000 The presence of those

00:16:45.160 aspects and traits

00:16:46.260 mitigates against

00:16:47.760 what could otherwise

00:16:48.840 be the dangers

00:16:49.920 associated with narcissism.

00:16:52.540 We might also spend

00:16:53.600 some time

00:16:54.120 in regard to

00:16:55.200 Trump's personality,

00:16:56.440 considering his family

00:16:57.820 and the evidence

00:16:58.880 for the Donald's

00:16:59.840 fundamental reliability

00:17:01.140 and perhaps even goodness

00:17:02.900 that its high level

00:17:04.180 of function indicates

00:17:05.580 the Trump children

00:17:06.960 are a remarkably

00:17:08.280 scandal-free

00:17:09.500 and stable bunch,

00:17:11.500 certainly by the standards

00:17:13.080 set by,

00:17:14.600 say,

00:17:15.300 Hunter Biden.

00:17:17.160 Barron seems to

00:17:18.400 genuinely admire

00:17:19.400 his father.

00:17:20.600 Donald Jr.

00:17:21.340 has many of the same

00:17:22.700 personality traits

00:17:23.700 of his father,

00:17:24.680 for better or worse,

00:17:25.840 but he has also

00:17:26.760 remained free

00:17:27.700 of the taint

00:17:28.500 of narcissistic

00:17:29.580 privilege and power.

00:17:31.700 Jared Kushner

00:17:32.500 married into the family,

00:17:34.300 but has certainly

00:17:34.920 done it credit,

00:17:36.040 not least on the

00:17:37.000 Abraham Accord front.

00:17:39.000 Trump's beautiful

00:17:39.780 and elegant wife,

00:17:40.800 Melania,

00:17:41.520 keeps her own counsel

00:17:42.680 and is admirable

00:17:43.840 in so doing.

00:17:45.580 She does not appear

00:17:46.640 to think that she could

00:17:47.800 or should run the country

00:17:49.020 merely because she is

00:17:50.560 married to the man

00:17:51.580 who does,

00:17:52.840 in marked contrast,

00:17:54.460 say,

00:17:54.900 to Hillary Clinton.

00:17:56.800 This familial honesty

00:17:58.420 and reliability

00:17:59.140 is particularly telling.

00:18:01.020 In the case of

00:18:01.780 the Trump family,

00:18:03.180 given that the

00:18:03.860 almost universally

00:18:05.040 Democrat-biased

00:18:06.420 legacy media

00:18:07.460 and its

00:18:08.180 propagandistic agents

00:18:10.020 would be thrilled

00:18:11.200 to trumpet

00:18:11.820 any possible misstep

00:18:13.560 on behalf of those

00:18:14.740 near the former

00:18:15.440 president

00:18:16.020 to the skies.

00:18:18.180 Where there is smoke,

00:18:20.060 there is fire,

00:18:21.500 or so goes the cliché.

00:18:23.480 This is sometimes,

00:18:25.100 but not always,

00:18:26.480 true.

00:18:27.300 The converse

00:18:28.180 may be something

00:18:28.980 more reliable.

00:18:30.180 Where there is

00:18:30.740 absolutely no smoke,

00:18:32.860 even though

00:18:34.200 many hawke-eyed

00:18:35.400 observers

00:18:35.940 are not only

00:18:36.760 watching,

00:18:37.560 but wishing

00:18:38.280 for it to appear.

00:18:40.320 There is perhaps

00:18:41.020 truly no fire.

00:18:43.080 Zero scandal

00:18:44.180 within the Trump family

00:18:46.140 is reminiscent,

00:18:47.220 for me,

00:18:48.080 of the

00:18:48.700 zero wars

00:18:50.500 of the Trump presidency.

00:18:52.580 It's something easy

00:18:53.540 to take for granted,

00:18:54.920 given its too easily

00:18:56.420 invisible non-existence,

00:18:58.420 as it's hard

00:18:59.060 to be grateful

00:18:59.740 for a problem

00:19:00.520 you just don't have.

00:19:02.300 But it is a relief.

00:19:03.540 And another indication

00:19:05.080 that the bombastic

00:19:06.680 Donald J

00:19:07.760 has at least

00:19:09.320 properly ruled

00:19:10.340 his own roost.

00:19:12.120 This is also

00:19:13.060 no easy matter,

00:19:14.360 as we have seen

00:19:15.460 in the appalling

00:19:16.540 family scandals

00:19:17.700 of the Biden White House,

00:19:19.200 and is another fact

00:19:20.760 mitigating against

00:19:22.260 the claim

00:19:22.760 that President Trump

00:19:23.800 is a danger

00:19:24.740 on the temperamental front.

00:19:26.520 We should address

00:19:28.120 one other relevant

00:19:29.360 clinical personality issue

00:19:31.160 following our analysis

00:19:32.700 of personality,

00:19:33.940 not least through family.

00:19:36.100 Consider,

00:19:37.240 before we do so,

00:19:39.000 that there exist

00:19:39.860 two primary influences

00:19:42.120 on behavior,

00:19:43.580 personality

00:19:44.000 and the habit

00:19:44.980 it constitutes,

00:19:46.720 and the specifics

00:19:47.840 of the situation

00:19:48.960 in question.

00:19:50.460 It turns out

00:19:51.420 that knowledge

00:19:51.960 of the former

00:19:52.840 personality

00:19:53.960 is clearly

00:19:55.400 less useful

00:19:56.480 than knowledge

00:19:57.120 of the second

00:19:57.980 situation

00:19:59.060 or context

00:20:00.100 when it comes

00:20:01.080 to the specific

00:20:01.960 and demanding task

00:20:03.300 of predicting

00:20:04.380 someone's behavior,

00:20:05.840 current or future.

00:20:07.800 Why?

00:20:09.120 Not least

00:20:10.000 because psychologically

00:20:11.020 healthy persons

00:20:12.100 are flexible,

00:20:13.680 adapting themselves

00:20:14.580 to the specific demands

00:20:15.980 of the current environment

00:20:17.100 despite their

00:20:18.360 trait proclivities.

00:20:19.740 Even extroverts

00:20:20.460 are likely to be quiet,

00:20:21.840 at least when they

00:20:22.700 have been well socialized

00:20:24.080 at a funeral.

00:20:25.820 In fact,

00:20:26.620 there is often

00:20:27.280 something seriously wrong

00:20:28.960 with those who lack

00:20:30.440 such situational flexibility,

00:20:32.860 although strength

00:20:33.660 of character

00:20:34.200 with regard to honesty

00:20:35.460 constitutes

00:20:36.280 a marked exception.

00:20:38.020 The psychopathologies

00:20:39.240 known as

00:20:39.940 personality disorders,

00:20:42.220 which constitute

00:20:43.140 a very serious source

00:20:44.620 of suffering

00:20:45.360 and social conflict,

00:20:47.540 are in fact

00:20:48.240 precisely what emerge

00:20:49.520 when someone

00:20:50.620 is too rigid

00:20:51.360 to change

00:20:52.240 with the social demands

00:20:53.580 of the moment.

00:20:54.900 This all means

00:20:55.880 that it is most useful

00:20:57.380 to gather evidence

00:20:59.020 about how someone

00:20:59.840 has acted in the past

00:21:01.320 in a given situation

00:21:03.060 if the goal

00:21:04.180 is prediction

00:21:04.720 of their behavior

00:21:05.520 when placed

00:21:06.380 in that situation

00:21:07.480 once again

00:21:08.880 in the future.

00:21:10.740 We have that evidence

00:21:11.960 already at hand

00:21:12.880 in the case of Trump.

00:21:14.220 This means that

00:21:14.980 we don't have to rely

00:21:16.020 on our observations

00:21:16.940 of his personality

00:21:17.940 for predicting

00:21:18.800 his behavior,

00:21:19.960 even if they are

00:21:20.820 well-founded,

00:21:21.940 compelling,

00:21:22.860 or even professional.

00:21:24.260 The man has already

00:21:25.140 been president.

00:21:26.920 And for four years,

00:21:29.420 what did we learn?

00:21:31.720 First and foremost,

00:21:35.020 the time during

00:21:36.300 Trump's tenure

00:21:37.060 was peaceful,

00:21:39.800 particularly on

00:21:40.600 the international front.

00:21:41.740 The importance

00:21:42.740 of that non-problem,

00:21:45.000 really an accomplishment,

00:21:46.460 can hardly be overstated.

00:21:49.380 War in the nuclear age

00:21:50.920 is infinitely dangerous.

00:21:53.280 Had Trump been

00:21:54.140 the dictator

00:21:54.980 in waiting

00:21:55.560 his foes so loudly

00:21:57.240 and fearfully

00:21:58.180 presume him to be,

00:21:59.880 wouldn't some evidence

00:22:01.060 of that

00:22:01.600 have made itself manifest,

00:22:03.740 say,

00:22:04.840 on the battlefield?

00:22:06.700 The typical narcissist,

00:22:09.680 particularly the more

00:22:10.940 malignant,

00:22:11.980 sadistic,

00:22:12.800 Machiavellian types,

00:22:14.060 have absolutely

00:22:16.120 no qualms

00:22:17.020 about sacrificing

00:22:18.060 others to their

00:22:19.360 imperial ambitions.

00:22:21.080 Indeed,

00:22:21.700 they may well regard it

00:22:22.880 as a great honor

00:22:23.900 for others to die

00:22:25.400 in service of their

00:22:26.680 own glorification.

00:22:28.640 Trump,

00:22:29.560 by marked contrast,

00:22:32.020 embroiled the U.S.,

00:22:33.260 the most powerful

00:22:34.380 military force

00:22:35.480 the world has ever seen,

00:22:37.580 in precisely

00:22:38.640 zero wars.

00:22:42.000 Zero is a very low number.

00:22:43.600 furthermore,

00:22:46.940 he negotiated

00:22:47.680 the Abraham Accords,

00:22:49.280 the nine miraculous

00:22:50.360 peace agreements

00:22:51.220 that have built

00:22:52.380 around Israel

00:22:53.240 a cohort of,

00:22:54.620 if not exactly

00:22:55.680 Arab allies,

00:22:57.160 at least not

00:22:58.100 outright enemies.

00:22:59.660 In a just world,

00:23:01.760 Trump and his

00:23:02.440 previous team

00:23:03.200 of diplomats

00:23:04.080 should have been

00:23:05.360 awarded the Nobel

00:23:06.300 Peace Prize

00:23:06.980 for this accomplishment,

00:23:08.280 which was deemed

00:23:08.980 impossible

00:23:10.180 by the experts

00:23:11.600 decade after decade

00:23:13.220 of the State Department.

00:23:15.580 It is of significant

00:23:16.980 note, too,

00:23:18.180 that these accords

00:23:19.100 have held

00:23:19.580 even after the events

00:23:21.020 of October 7,

00:23:22.320 2023,

00:23:23.620 and all the work

00:23:24.860 that has been done,

00:23:26.340 mostly by the truly

00:23:27.600 pathological actors

00:23:28.800 of the Islamic Republic,

00:23:30.280 to set the Muslim

00:23:32.200 and, indeed,

00:23:33.320 the broader world

00:23:34.220 yet again

00:23:35.240 against the Jews.

00:23:37.540 Let us reiterate

00:23:38.520 in relation

00:23:39.280 to our analysis.

00:23:40.580 We understand

00:23:42.060 his personality,

00:23:43.520 arguably,

00:23:44.360 and may even have

00:23:45.380 some remaining

00:23:46.100 qualms about it.

00:23:47.700 However,

00:23:48.200 Donald J. Trump

00:23:48.980 has already been

00:23:49.760 president,

00:23:50.880 and his tenure

00:23:51.920 was marked

00:23:52.680 by an absolute

00:23:54.320 lack of

00:23:55.180 cataclysmic

00:23:56.000 occurrences.

00:23:57.060 We can therefore

00:23:57.920 reliably rest

00:23:59.160 assured

00:23:59.720 on that front.

00:24:01.780 It might also

00:24:03.340 be noted here

00:24:04.220 that his

00:24:04.680 impolite

00:24:05.600 assertiveness

00:24:06.360 and proclivity

00:24:07.480 not to withdraw

00:24:08.640 in fear

00:24:09.300 or dismay

00:24:10.100 might be

00:24:11.060 a real strength

00:24:11.920 when dealing

00:24:12.440 with dictators,

00:24:13.680 particularly in

00:24:14.520 combination

00:24:14.920 with his openness,

00:24:16.400 which makes him

00:24:17.040 able to think

00:24:17.960 outside the box

00:24:19.220 and to bring

00:24:20.120 to the negotiating

00:24:20.960 table the advantage

00:24:22.240 of unpredictability.

00:24:24.360 Furthermore,

00:24:25.880 Trump's time

00:24:26.460 as president

00:24:27.080 was also marked

00:24:28.700 by a not

00:24:29.360 inconsiderable

00:24:30.400 domestic economic

00:24:31.600 record,

00:24:32.580 with the arguably

00:24:33.940 marked exception

00:24:35.120 of debt

00:24:36.060 accumulation.

00:24:36.820 at least decent

00:24:38.720 economic performance

00:24:40.180 and peace.

00:24:42.800 The fact of

00:24:43.520 these twin facts

00:24:44.480 has put many

00:24:45.160 of the various

00:24:45.760 concerns I once

00:24:46.980 had about

00:24:47.460 Trump's personality

00:24:48.440 to rest,

00:24:50.020 as has my now

00:24:51.080 more sophisticated

00:24:51.940 appreciation for

00:24:53.480 his particularized

00:24:54.720 and unique

00:24:55.240 combination of

00:24:56.180 traits.

00:24:57.020 The events that

00:24:57.780 have surrounded

00:24:58.340 him as of late

00:24:59.160 have done even

00:24:59.740 more in that

00:25:00.360 regard.

00:25:01.420 Why?

00:25:02.500 Well,

00:25:03.620 the Republican

00:25:04.600 candidate has

00:25:05.500 now attracted

00:25:06.320 a truly

00:25:06.920 remarkable,

00:25:08.160 surprising,

00:25:09.340 and stellar

00:25:10.460 group of

00:25:11.120 compatriots

00:25:11.780 around him,

00:25:12.680 all highly

00:25:13.900 accomplished

00:25:14.500 and formidable

00:25:15.200 figures,

00:25:16.100 each with their

00:25:16.920 own marked

00:25:17.720 eccentricities.

00:25:19.600 This is also

00:25:20.500 not something

00:25:21.160 that is likely

00:25:21.800 to occur

00:25:22.480 when someone

00:25:23.660 pathologically

00:25:24.820 narcissistic

00:25:25.940 is running

00:25:27.020 the show.

00:25:27.980 That group

00:25:28.820 includes

00:25:29.400 Elon Musk,

00:25:30.740 Tony Stark

00:25:31.580 genius,

00:25:32.480 billionaire,

00:25:33.180 playboy,

00:25:33.840 philanthropist,

00:25:34.580 Robert F.

00:25:35.860 Kennedy,

00:25:36.600 charismatic,

00:25:37.480 eccentric,

00:25:38.080 and intimidating,

00:25:39.200 Tulsi Gabbard,

00:25:40.520 who is in truth

00:25:41.760 everything that

00:25:42.680 Kamala Harris

00:25:43.480 plays at being,

00:25:45.500 Vivek Ramaswamy,

00:25:47.040 smart,

00:25:47.960 self-promoting,

00:25:48.960 creative,

00:25:49.940 witty,

00:25:50.320 articulate,

00:25:51.280 young,

00:25:52.220 entrepreneurial,

00:25:53.360 and fast on his

00:25:54.240 feet,

00:25:54.700 as well as

00:25:55.420 J.D. Vance,

00:25:56.720 the hillbilly,

00:25:57.920 who pulled himself

00:25:59.000 out of the

00:25:59.560 Appalachians by

00:26:00.700 his bootstraps

00:26:01.820 and who would

00:26:02.980 in sane times

00:26:04.600 be a veritable

00:26:05.820 poster boy

00:26:06.600 for the hypothetically

00:26:07.980 support the poor

00:26:09.280 and working class

00:26:10.320 left.

00:26:11.340 I have been joking

00:26:12.140 to myself

00:26:12.800 and some others

00:26:13.820 in my circle

00:26:14.580 that the X-Men

00:26:16.220 have now arrived

00:26:17.800 in reality

00:26:18.640 to rescue

00:26:19.600 the Republic.

00:26:20.640 This is a transformation

00:26:21.820 that has not yet

00:26:23.080 been fully noted

00:26:24.120 even by the

00:26:25.440 Trump campaign

00:26:26.160 itself

00:26:26.740 despite its

00:26:28.220 truly

00:26:28.780 and surreally

00:26:30.340 revolutionary

00:26:31.460 nature.

00:26:32.820 First and foremost

00:26:33.700 among these new

00:26:34.500 supporters and

00:26:35.200 colleagues of the

00:26:35.920 former president

00:26:36.700 is Elon Musk.

00:26:39.560 He truly is

00:26:40.840 and so comically

00:26:42.600 an X-Man

00:26:44.340 as is starkly

00:26:46.020 evidenced

00:26:46.660 by the new name

00:26:47.900 of the controversial

00:26:48.880 social media platform

00:26:50.360 he now owns

00:26:51.380 and was once

00:26:52.520 known as Twitter.

00:26:53.980 He has been

00:26:54.700 struggling to build

00:26:55.760 X,

00:26:56.820 the everything

00:26:57.540 platform,

00:26:58.240 for decades

00:26:59.280 with that

00:26:59.920 particular moniker

00:27:00.860 in his mind

00:27:01.540 the whole time.

00:27:03.060 The X-Men

00:27:03.920 like the Avengers

00:27:05.500 was a group

00:27:06.820 of misfit

00:27:07.780 mutants

00:27:08.620 who came together

00:27:09.900 to save the

00:27:10.800 normies

00:27:11.300 from the various

00:27:12.080 monsters of the

00:27:13.100 world.

00:27:14.180 It is frequently

00:27:14.880 the case that

00:27:15.680 life imitates

00:27:16.680 art

00:27:17.140 and there were

00:27:18.160 perhaps real

00:27:19.100 reasons stirring

00:27:20.500 in the collective

00:27:21.740 unconscious of

00:27:22.680 the West

00:27:23.180 inclining us

00:27:24.380 to look

00:27:24.840 toward the

00:27:25.860 eccentric

00:27:26.380 and super

00:27:27.200 normal

00:27:27.680 for our

00:27:28.740 salvation.

00:27:30.000 Fiction meets

00:27:30.740 reality in the

00:27:31.900 strangest of

00:27:32.820 ways.

00:27:33.660 In any case,

00:27:34.860 Trump is now

00:27:36.180 playing Charles

00:27:37.100 Xavier to a

00:27:38.520 strange group

00:27:39.440 of mutants

00:27:40.240 or if the

00:27:41.700 similar metaphor

00:27:42.640 of the Avengers

00:27:43.560 is more

00:27:44.560 attractive

00:27:45.100 conceptually,

00:27:46.920 Captain America

00:27:47.860 to the gods

00:27:49.280 and superheroes.

00:27:50.220 Let us assess

00:27:51.720 this group

00:27:52.360 of remarkable

00:27:52.980 people

00:27:53.460 psychologically

00:27:54.280 one by one.

00:27:56.580 I am in fact

00:27:57.400 in a better

00:27:57.840 position to do

00:27:59.060 just that

00:27:59.920 with them

00:28:00.680 than I was

00:28:01.580 in the case

00:28:02.080 of Trump

00:28:02.560 as I have

00:28:03.400 personally met

00:28:04.140 Musk and

00:28:04.920 the other

00:28:05.400 group members

00:28:06.120 several times

00:28:06.900 with the

00:28:07.540 exception of

00:28:08.220 VP candidate

00:28:09.080 Vance

00:28:09.660 with whom a

00:28:10.520 podcast is

00:28:11.340 currently being

00:28:12.200 scheduled.

00:28:13.140 Let's begin

00:28:13.940 our analysis

00:28:14.600 with Mr.

00:28:15.600 Elon Musk,

00:28:16.780 the Tony Stark

00:28:17.900 billionaire,

00:28:18.860 although

00:28:19.200 importantly

00:28:20.120 without the

00:28:21.320 arms dealing.

00:28:22.920 Before diving

00:28:23.740 in, however,

00:28:25.300 one final

00:28:26.140 important fact

00:28:27.240 should be noted

00:28:28.320 pertaining to

00:28:29.480 the former

00:28:29.940 president.

00:28:31.080 The Donald

00:28:31.540 is evidently

00:28:32.360 willing to

00:28:32.860 share the

00:28:33.480 spotlight with

00:28:34.480 Musk and

00:28:35.980 apparently

00:28:36.860 to listen

00:28:38.080 to what the

00:28:39.180 eccentric but

00:28:40.100 stunningly

00:28:41.080 capable and

00:28:41.760 clearly genius

00:28:42.920 level intellect

00:28:43.900 former South

00:28:45.020 African has

00:28:46.300 to say.

00:28:47.420 A cynic

00:28:47.880 might opine

00:28:48.520 that the

00:28:48.900 former

00:28:49.160 president is

00:28:49.980 merely

00:28:50.300 capitalizing

00:28:51.120 on the

00:28:51.740 additional

00:28:52.160 attention his

00:28:52.940 dalliance with

00:28:53.700 Musk might

00:28:54.300 bring him.

00:28:55.160 I would

00:28:55.560 object,

00:28:56.500 however,

00:28:56.940 as a

00:28:57.340 clinician,

00:28:58.600 on twin

00:28:59.440 grounds.

00:29:00.380 First,

00:29:01.260 if Trump

00:29:01.760 truly were

00:29:02.420 narcissistic,

00:29:03.960 Musk might

00:29:04.520 be the

00:29:05.000 last person

00:29:05.980 with whom

00:29:06.680 he would

00:29:07.120 deli.

00:29:07.980 The latter,

00:29:09.040 Musk,

00:29:09.820 rivals or

00:29:11.120 exceeds him

00:29:12.080 in fame and

00:29:12.980 power and

00:29:14.060 definitely

00:29:14.680 surpasses him

00:29:15.620 in sheer

00:29:16.000 genius.

00:29:16.560 that is

00:29:17.380 not a

00:29:17.820 situation

00:29:18.420 that a

00:29:19.140 truly

00:29:19.420 self-centered

00:29:20.340 and power

00:29:20.920 mad dictator

00:29:21.860 in waiting

00:29:22.420 is likely

00:29:23.580 to appreciate.

00:29:25.300 Second,

00:29:26.160 with regard

00:29:26.800 to garnering

00:29:27.520 attention,

00:29:28.620 the genuine

00:29:29.140 narcissist is

00:29:30.100 someone unlikely

00:29:31.080 to believe

00:29:31.660 that anyone

00:29:32.580 else is

00:29:33.740 likely to

00:29:34.180 bring anything

00:29:34.680 of value

00:29:35.300 to the

00:29:35.880 table,

00:29:36.640 not already

00:29:37.780 in display

00:29:38.600 in consequence

00:29:39.280 of their

00:29:39.800 own boundless

00:29:40.920 and singular

00:29:41.740 specialness.

00:29:43.480 On to

00:29:43.940 Elon himself.

00:29:45.360 First and

00:29:45.980 foremost,

00:29:46.640 the world's

00:29:47.140 premier

00:29:47.700 engineer and

00:29:48.800 inventor is

00:29:50.080 a man

00:29:50.580 clearly and

00:29:51.400 demonstrably

00:29:52.160 capable of

00:29:52.900 doing six

00:29:53.880 impossible

00:29:54.920 things at

00:29:56.380 the same

00:29:56.880 time.

00:29:57.620 This speaks

00:29:58.400 primarily of

00:29:59.260 his intelligence.

00:30:00.440 Musk is

00:30:00.900 exceptionally

00:30:01.820 one in a

00:30:02.980 billion high

00:30:03.900 in general

00:30:04.480 cognitive ability

00:30:05.560 and openness,

00:30:06.980 a true

00:30:07.420 genius,

00:30:08.400 albeit in

00:30:09.240 the technical

00:30:09.800 manner.

00:30:10.620 That is an

00:30:11.360 observation,

00:30:12.080 not a

00:30:12.360 criticism.

00:30:13.340 With regard

00:30:14.040 to personality,

00:30:15.260 he's not

00:30:15.820 particularly

00:30:16.620 extroverted,

00:30:18.000 tilting,

00:30:18.680 I would say,

00:30:19.300 in the opposite

00:30:19.960 direction,

00:30:20.680 although not

00:30:21.220 exceptionally so.

00:30:22.720 He is moderate

00:30:23.760 in neuroticism,

00:30:25.580 carrying a

00:30:26.540 fair burden

00:30:27.180 of depression-like

00:30:28.260 pain with him,

00:30:29.480 not least because

00:30:30.400 of a truly

00:30:31.000 rough childhood,

00:30:32.360 which he

00:30:32.780 alludes to,

00:30:33.640 but does not

00:30:34.640 make a show

00:30:35.480 of.

00:30:36.220 There is some

00:30:37.200 withdrawal there,

00:30:38.560 run rough

00:30:39.320 shod over

00:30:40.220 by his

00:30:40.760 brilliance

00:30:41.240 and openness

00:30:41.840 and also

00:30:42.740 some volatility

00:30:43.600 evidenced in

00:30:44.860 his behavior

00:30:45.500 on X

00:30:46.200 online.

00:30:47.720 Somewhat

00:30:48.360 reminiscent of

00:30:49.200 Trump himself,

00:30:50.600 Musk is

00:30:51.400 also a

00:30:51.980 worker and

00:30:52.680 manager,

00:30:53.860 hard and

00:30:54.540 dedicated,

00:30:55.460 far beyond

00:30:56.200 the norm,

00:30:57.160 so exceptionally

00:30:58.540 high in

00:30:59.100 conscientiousness

00:31:00.100 and agreeable

00:31:01.360 enough,

00:31:02.280 particularly on

00:31:03.040 the compassionate

00:31:03.660 side,

00:31:04.340 to be very

00:31:05.300 pro-human.

00:31:07.000 He is,

00:31:07.500 however,

00:31:07.800 no pushover

00:31:08.760 is not

00:31:09.660 particularly

00:31:10.180 polite and

00:31:11.320 can and

00:31:12.240 does make

00:31:13.260 the difficult

00:31:13.900 judgments of

00:31:14.680 discrimination

00:31:15.460 that allow him

00:31:16.720 to continually

00:31:17.440 operate and

00:31:18.720 maintain multiple,

00:31:20.660 extremely large,

00:31:22.340 demanding,

00:31:23.620 stunningly diverse

00:31:25.000 and truly

00:31:26.000 cutting-edge

00:31:26.620 enterprises.

00:31:27.820 His staggering

00:31:28.920 intelligence and

00:31:29.980 business acumen

00:31:31.020 means that he

00:31:32.220 brings something

00:31:33.140 near miraculous

00:31:34.440 to the Trump

00:31:35.680 X-Men

00:31:36.640 team.

00:31:37.880 I would vote

00:31:38.600 for Trump

00:31:39.240 as president

00:31:40.060 if I could

00:31:41.060 vote and

00:31:41.880 I can't

00:31:42.500 because I'm

00:31:43.260 Canadian and

00:31:44.020 forgive me

00:31:44.920 for that.

00:31:45.940 Just because

00:31:46.740 Musk has

00:31:47.320 agreed to

00:31:47.760 play a role

00:31:48.340 in any new

00:31:48.900 administration

00:31:49.540 that Trump

00:31:50.040 might bring

00:31:50.540 about.

00:31:51.280 He has even

00:31:51.820 wittily proposed

00:31:53.140 to head up a

00:31:54.280 new Department

00:31:55.100 of Governmental

00:31:56.040 Efficiency,

00:31:57.380 a phrase

00:31:58.060 whose initials

00:31:59.720 D-O-G-E

00:32:01.120 indicate the

00:32:02.320 willingness in

00:32:03.160 an inside joke

00:32:04.300 manner to do

00:32:05.560 only good

00:32:06.620 every day,

00:32:08.080 as well as

00:32:08.680 signifying a

00:32:09.500 bemused but

00:32:10.400 knowing dog

00:32:11.240 whose image

00:32:12.160 has become a

00:32:12.920 widespread meme.

00:32:14.360 It has been

00:32:15.080 my diligent

00:32:15.880 and hopeful

00:32:16.620 observation that

00:32:17.720 Musk is a

00:32:18.800 good man,

00:32:20.000 or at least

00:32:20.640 a terrible,

00:32:21.700 complicated man

00:32:22.700 trying very hard

00:32:24.320 to be good,

00:32:25.520 which is all

00:32:26.080 we could truly

00:32:26.780 hope if we

00:32:27.520 were the least

00:32:28.060 bit realistic

00:32:28.880 about human

00:32:29.600 nature and

00:32:30.640 our own

00:32:31.280 prospects.

00:32:32.420 Have you

00:32:32.620 heard of

00:32:33.020 anything more

00:32:33.560 chilling than

00:32:34.220 frozen beef?

00:32:36.400 Until November

00:32:37.080 3rd, get an

00:32:37.820 always fresh,

00:32:38.620 never frozen

00:32:39.220 Dave Single

00:32:39.820 from Wendy's

00:32:40.440 for only $4.

00:32:41.820 Nothing scary

00:32:42.660 about that.

00:32:43.520 Taxes extra

00:32:44.100 participating

00:32:44.700 Wendy's until

00:32:45.240 November 3rd.

00:32:45.920 Terms and

00:32:46.280 conditions apply.

00:32:47.860 Could Musk

00:32:48.360 do to the

00:32:48.840 American deep

00:32:49.580 state what

00:32:50.780 he did for

00:32:51.280 Twitter?

00:32:52.180 Could he

00:32:52.680 prune and

00:32:53.800 cut so the

00:32:55.360 republic could

00:32:55.960 revitalize?

00:32:57.420 Stranger things

00:32:58.180 have happened

00:32:58.800 in the course

00:32:59.340 of human

00:32:59.720 history.

00:33:00.660 Javier

00:33:01.060 Millay is

00:33:01.940 trying something

00:33:02.800 similarly

00:33:03.540 demanding in

00:33:04.600 Argentina.

00:33:05.840 And the

00:33:06.260 U.S. of A.

00:33:07.600 has a remarkable

00:33:08.460 capacity to

00:33:09.440 reinvent itself.

00:33:10.980 Someone like

00:33:11.720 Musk playing

00:33:13.160 a key role in

00:33:14.760 the governance of

00:33:15.820 the greatest show

00:33:16.740 on earth is a

00:33:18.180 once-in-a-lifetime

00:33:19.240 opportunity.

00:33:20.440 That's an adventure

00:33:21.460 by anyone's

00:33:22.400 standards.

00:33:23.380 I have met with

00:33:24.400 the next member of

00:33:25.320 this group in

00:33:26.100 question, Mr.

00:33:27.460 Robert F.

00:33:28.060 Kennedy, five

00:33:29.240 times, speaking

00:33:30.700 with and listening

00:33:31.680 to him at some

00:33:32.560 length each time.

00:33:34.560 He has the

00:33:35.540 near manic

00:33:36.320 energy and

00:33:37.240 loquaciousness of

00:33:38.380 those with

00:33:38.880 exceptional verbal

00:33:40.060 intelligence and

00:33:41.320 the intensely

00:33:42.160 focused concentration

00:33:43.740 that pushes people

00:33:45.400 who have that

00:33:46.340 proclivity beyond

00:33:47.560 even their own

00:33:48.360 limits in pursuit

00:33:49.760 of a goal.

00:33:50.360 He's dreadfully

00:33:51.540 well-informed,

00:33:52.820 a veritable

00:33:53.320 master of

00:33:54.260 historical minutiae

00:33:55.900 in a manner

00:33:56.820 nonetheless relevant

00:33:58.280 to today's

00:33:59.720 concerns.

00:34:00.840 He is also

00:34:01.540 someone who,

00:34:02.540 like Trump and

00:34:03.200 Musk,

00:34:03.900 can and does

00:34:04.700 draw the overall

00:34:06.280 picture accurately

00:34:07.380 and even in a

00:34:08.660 somewhat prophetic

00:34:09.640 manner.

00:34:10.800 He is fearless

00:34:11.480 and dedicated,

00:34:12.780 having stood up

00:34:13.700 and successfully

00:34:14.840 against even

00:34:16.120 the largest

00:34:16.960 giants of the

00:34:18.240 proto-fascist

00:34:19.320 modern state,

00:34:20.360 and has

00:34:21.280 single-handedly

00:34:22.180 drawn public

00:34:22.980 attention to

00:34:24.240 what is

00:34:24.900 genuinely a

00:34:26.060 health crisis

00:34:26.800 of gargantuan

00:34:27.960 proportions,

00:34:29.060 despite its

00:34:29.960 invisibility on

00:34:31.000 the political

00:34:31.500 stage until

00:34:32.940 the current

00:34:33.480 time.

00:34:34.480 He's also

00:34:35.120 someone once

00:34:37.400 bitten,

00:34:38.640 twice shy,

00:34:40.220 a seriously

00:34:40.940 wounded apostate,

00:34:42.660 again like

00:34:43.560 Trump and

00:34:44.120 Musk as well

00:34:44.860 as Tulsi

00:34:45.680 Gabbard,

00:34:46.420 from his

00:34:46.940 own original

00:34:47.980 favored party,

00:34:49.240 the Democrats.

00:34:51.460 When I first

00:34:52.240 spoke with

00:34:52.760 Mr. Kennedy

00:34:53.480 on my

00:34:54.360 YouTube channel,

00:34:55.480 I asked him

00:34:56.240 the same

00:34:56.660 question I

00:34:57.280 always ask

00:34:57.840 the many

00:34:58.280 Democrat

00:34:58.760 leaders I

00:34:59.460 have spoken

00:34:59.960 with,

00:35:00.580 most privately,

00:35:02.280 unwilling as

00:35:02.980 they generally

00:35:03.620 are to risk

00:35:04.380 being seen

00:35:05.000 in public

00:35:05.540 with the

00:35:06.320 likes of

00:35:06.860 me.

00:35:07.780 The question,

00:35:08.620 when do you

00:35:09.200 think the

00:35:09.660 left goes

00:35:10.200 too far?

00:35:11.400 His answer

00:35:11.920 to that,

00:35:12.620 in interview

00:35:13.120 one,

00:35:14.040 at the very

00:35:14.520 beginning of

00:35:15.060 his presidential

00:35:15.700 march?

00:35:16.180 I'm trying

00:35:16.900 to run

00:35:17.480 a campaign

00:35:17.960 that brings

00:35:18.820 people together

00:35:19.620 rather than

00:35:20.400 a campaign

00:35:21.040 that is based

00:35:23.020 upon that

00:35:24.120 kind of

00:35:24.480 tribalism of

00:35:25.560 condemning

00:35:26.160 people for

00:35:26.840 ideologies that

00:35:28.040 I don't

00:35:28.300 necessarily agree

00:35:29.320 with.

00:35:30.240 I had my

00:35:31.420 doubts about

00:35:32.080 the suitability

00:35:32.800 of that answer

00:35:33.660 in the long

00:35:34.720 run,

00:35:35.620 having experienced

00:35:36.860 precisely what

00:35:38.180 happens when

00:35:38.840 the left goes

00:35:39.740 too far in

00:35:41.080 my own private

00:35:41.920 and personal

00:35:42.560 life.

00:35:43.460 Nonetheless,

00:35:43.780 on that

00:35:44.720 occasion,

00:35:46.120 I let the

00:35:47.060 question lie.

00:35:48.500 I can tell

00:35:49.000 you,

00:35:49.260 however,

00:35:49.600 that Mr.

00:35:50.100 Kennedy had

00:35:50.680 plenty to

00:35:51.280 say on

00:35:51.680 that topic

00:35:52.480 when we

00:35:53.220 spoke on

00:35:53.800 YouTube

00:35:54.140 on our

00:35:54.960 second

00:35:55.400 occasion.

00:35:56.580 The erstwhile

00:35:57.380 Democrat

00:35:58.000 contender for

00:35:58.840 president had,

00:36:00.020 by that time,

00:36:01.520 experienced

00:36:02.120 running hard

00:36:03.380 and headlong

00:36:04.100 into precisely

00:36:05.340 what I had

00:36:05.940 intimated in

00:36:07.140 the form of

00:36:07.760 my initial

00:36:08.460 and purposefully

00:36:09.520 leading question.

00:36:11.020 In consequence,

00:36:12.180 Robert F.

00:36:12.920 detailed for

00:36:14.740 at least an

00:36:15.400 hour his

00:36:16.800 utter dismay

00:36:18.080 with the

00:36:18.640 power-mad,

00:36:20.100 corrupt,

00:36:21.120 ideologically

00:36:21.860 possessed

00:36:22.500 shenanigans

00:36:23.480 of the

00:36:24.380 progressive

00:36:24.800 left,

00:36:25.780 the very

00:36:26.420 force that

00:36:27.140 could continue

00:36:27.960 its current

00:36:28.540 domination of

00:36:29.460 the public

00:36:29.880 discourse and

00:36:31.140 seen if

00:36:32.240 Ms. Kamala

00:36:33.120 Harris and

00:36:34.320 the shadowy

00:36:35.220 and unknown

00:36:36.060 forces behind

00:36:37.140 her ascent to

00:36:38.180 power managed

00:36:39.660 to maintain

00:36:40.280 their positions

00:36:41.260 come November.

00:36:43.220 What is

00:36:43.480 Kennedy like

00:36:44.240 as a

00:36:44.620 personality?

00:36:45.820 Extroverted

00:36:46.380 like Trump,

00:36:48.600 although perhaps

00:36:49.320 not as much

00:36:50.040 so.

00:36:51.040 Trump is

00:36:51.480 hard to

00:36:51.840 equal,

00:36:52.500 let alone

00:36:52.960 top in

00:36:53.760 that regard,

00:36:55.040 not without

00:36:55.640 his pain and

00:36:56.520 negative emotion

00:36:57.320 like Musk,

00:36:58.320 not too

00:36:59.060 agreeable,

00:37:00.260 although not

00:37:00.820 at all

00:37:01.200 narcissistic.

00:37:02.880 Despite his

00:37:03.840 markedly

00:37:04.580 forceful

00:37:05.240 assertiveness

00:37:06.040 in opinion

00:37:06.760 and as a

00:37:07.500 speaker,

00:37:07.840 this was

00:37:09.280 evidenced

00:37:10.000 not least

00:37:11.060 by my

00:37:11.660 comparative

00:37:12.220 silence,

00:37:13.380 particularly

00:37:13.700 during our

00:37:14.400 second YouTube

00:37:15.140 discussion.

00:37:16.260 I'm a very

00:37:17.000 talkative,

00:37:17.980 verbally

00:37:18.300 assertive

00:37:18.920 person,

00:37:19.720 for better

00:37:20.160 or worse,

00:37:21.360 but Mr.

00:37:22.000 Kennedy had

00:37:22.600 the stage

00:37:23.140 for the vast

00:37:23.740 majority of

00:37:24.420 our time

00:37:24.820 together.

00:37:25.600 That was

00:37:25.980 as it should

00:37:26.520 be, in

00:37:26.880 my opinion,

00:37:27.940 given the

00:37:28.360 circumstances,

00:37:29.400 but it is

00:37:30.000 still something

00:37:30.640 that does

00:37:31.160 not happen

00:37:31.800 to me

00:37:32.140 very often,

00:37:33.260 even when

00:37:33.720 I intend

00:37:34.440 it to.

00:37:35.440 Does this

00:37:35.900 mean that

00:37:36.380 RFK is

00:37:37.240 inappropriately

00:37:38.260 forward,

00:37:39.120 self-aggrandizing,

00:37:40.680 self-centered?

00:37:41.840 Not my

00:37:42.380 experience.

00:37:43.600 One anecdote

00:37:44.500 quite tellingly

00:37:45.820 reveals why

00:37:46.840 RFK Jr.

00:37:48.280 and I

00:37:48.760 encountered

00:37:49.380 one another

00:37:50.000 one evening

00:37:50.740 in a restaurant

00:37:51.400 I happened

00:37:52.120 to be dining

00:37:52.660 in during

00:37:53.540 my last

00:37:54.080 tour.

00:37:54.780 I was there

00:37:55.360 with Dr.

00:37:56.240 Phil in

00:37:57.020 a private

00:37:57.480 room in

00:37:57.980 the back

00:37:58.340 of the

00:37:58.560 building.

00:37:59.260 Mr.

00:37:59.600 Kennedy

00:37:59.880 happened

00:38:00.340 into the

00:38:00.900 establishment,

00:38:01.960 was informed

00:38:02.700 that we

00:38:03.360 were also

00:38:04.060 there,

00:38:04.900 and sent

00:38:05.600 someone forward

00:38:06.520 to ask

00:38:07.240 if he

00:38:07.800 could come

00:38:08.240 and say

00:38:08.640 hello.

00:38:09.640 The fact

00:38:10.240 that he

00:38:10.520 so politely

00:38:11.240 sought permission,

00:38:12.660 since no

00:38:13.540 offense would

00:38:14.300 have been

00:38:14.560 taken had

00:38:15.200 he not,

00:38:16.180 was something

00:38:16.640 I noted,

00:38:17.720 as was his

00:38:18.700 somewhat near

00:38:19.680 apologetic entrance,

00:38:21.480 asking the

00:38:22.200 two of us

00:38:22.740 very graciously

00:38:23.580 to forgive

00:38:24.580 the intrusion.

00:38:25.860 An intrusion

00:38:26.580 it was not,

00:38:27.460 as we were

00:38:28.060 happy to see

00:38:28.720 him,

00:38:28.960 and pleased

00:38:29.740 that he

00:38:30.080 dropped in.

00:38:31.220 He could

00:38:31.540 have just

00:38:31.860 taken that

00:38:32.400 for granted,

00:38:33.160 and even

00:38:33.720 justly

00:38:34.280 so.

00:38:35.220 But he

00:38:35.560 didn't.

00:38:36.620 A trivial

00:38:37.080 happening,

00:38:37.620 you might

00:38:37.920 object.

00:38:39.020 But I

00:38:39.360 think not.

00:38:40.620 Instead of

00:38:41.180 presuming,

00:38:42.320 he displayed

00:38:42.960 all the

00:38:43.600 social niceties

00:38:44.580 that might

00:38:45.120 be hoped

00:38:45.580 for,

00:38:46.120 and more.

00:38:47.180 I saw

00:38:47.600 evidence of

00:38:48.320 the same

00:38:48.760 proclivity

00:38:49.280 every time

00:38:49.800 I met

00:38:50.220 him.

00:38:51.020 It's not

00:38:51.620 all about

00:38:52.420 RFK Jr.,

00:38:54.560 and that is

00:38:55.020 a good thing

00:38:55.480 to see,

00:38:56.380 given the

00:38:56.880 fame and

00:38:57.400 family

00:38:57.760 reputation

00:38:58.460 that has

00:38:59.260 been part

00:38:59.720 and parcel

00:39:00.220 of his

00:39:00.620 life ever

00:39:01.500 since day

00:39:02.140 one.

00:39:02.520 This is

00:39:03.740 not to

00:39:04.160 say that

00:39:04.580 Kennedy,

00:39:05.220 like Trump

00:39:05.900 and Musk,

00:39:06.380 is without

00:39:06.820 his eccentricities.

00:39:08.320 But as the

00:39:08.900 German philosopher

00:39:09.760 Friedrich Nietzsche

00:39:10.660 once so

00:39:11.280 perspicaciously

00:39:12.200 noted,

00:39:13.540 great men

00:39:14.100 are seldom

00:39:14.620 credited

00:39:15.160 with their

00:39:16.220 stupidities.

00:39:17.760 RFK Jr.

00:39:18.880 is a singular

00:39:19.700 person,

00:39:20.860 with everything

00:39:21.380 that entails

00:39:22.120 on the

00:39:22.960 positive and

00:39:24.020 negative side.

00:39:25.300 He has a

00:39:25.800 somewhat

00:39:26.160 conspiratorial

00:39:27.400 mindset,

00:39:28.660 which,

00:39:29.400 given the

00:39:29.880 means of

00:39:30.400 demise of

00:39:31.040 his uncle

00:39:31.480 and father

00:39:32.140 is eminently

00:39:33.440 understandable.

00:39:34.960 Furthermore,

00:39:35.940 there are

00:39:36.380 indeed strange

00:39:37.420 things afoot

00:39:38.300 in the world

00:39:38.980 today,

00:39:39.700 such that

00:39:40.280 Kennedy's

00:39:40.880 suspicion on

00:39:41.740 various fronts

00:39:42.560 may be well

00:39:43.700 warranted.

00:39:44.820 Nonetheless,

00:39:45.440 it's still a

00:39:46.060 tendency that

00:39:47.200 has to be

00:39:47.780 carefully held

00:39:48.580 in check.

00:39:49.560 Better to

00:39:50.120 assume

00:39:50.460 incompetence

00:39:51.300 than malevolence,

00:39:52.520 for example.

00:39:53.600 And adept

00:39:54.340 pattern recognizers,

00:39:56.160 of which Kennedy,

00:39:57.300 like Trump,

00:39:57.940 is certainly one,

00:39:59.460 can be plagued

00:40:00.500 by false

00:40:01.320 positives,

00:40:02.640 the tendency

00:40:03.200 to see

00:40:03.760 something that

00:40:04.880 is in fact

00:40:05.640 not there.

00:40:06.940 But the

00:40:07.680 tectonic plates

00:40:09.100 are moving

00:40:10.400 under our

00:40:11.080 culture at an

00:40:12.300 ever-increasing

00:40:13.180 rate,

00:40:14.060 and Kennedy's

00:40:14.700 skepticism,

00:40:15.760 his ability to

00:40:16.520 see the forest

00:40:17.400 and the trees,

00:40:19.120 could easily

00:40:19.740 prove something

00:40:20.400 of great advantage

00:40:21.380 to the American

00:40:22.140 people,

00:40:22.980 prone as they

00:40:23.920 are now,

00:40:25.020 to manipulation

00:40:25.980 by the looming

00:40:27.280 quasi-fascist

00:40:28.700 forces of the

00:40:30.020 utopian,

00:40:31.060 authoritarian,

00:40:32.480 wannabe

00:40:32.940 globalist state.

00:40:35.000 Imagine,

00:40:35.940 for a moment,

00:40:36.680 that Musk

00:40:37.300 can bring

00:40:38.400 efficiency to

00:40:39.360 the federal

00:40:39.900 government,

00:40:40.960 and that Kennedy,

00:40:41.840 with his

00:40:42.260 skepticism and

00:40:43.260 willing to

00:40:43.720 battle Goliath's,

00:40:45.000 however large,

00:40:46.060 stumbling,

00:40:46.560 and blind,

00:40:47.420 can seriously

00:40:48.180 address the

00:40:49.060 twin and

00:40:50.080 terribly pervasive

00:40:51.200 and serious

00:40:51.880 problems of

00:40:53.000 obesity and

00:40:53.920 insulin resistance

00:40:55.000 and their

00:40:55.680 terrible spin-offs.

00:40:57.180 these two

00:40:58.520 things alone

00:40:59.520 would be well

00:41:01.060 worth much

00:41:01.660 attendant risk,

00:41:03.080 in my estimation.

00:41:04.820 Who dares,

00:41:06.000 after all,

00:41:07.880 wins.

00:41:08.860 Could we ask

00:41:09.640 anything more of

00:41:10.420 any single

00:41:11.080 four-year

00:41:11.580 administration?

00:41:12.900 But there is

00:41:13.480 even more on

00:41:14.340 the table,

00:41:15.440 as there are

00:41:16.120 more remarkable

00:41:17.080 actors involved.

00:41:19.280 The last time I

00:41:20.560 saw Tulsi Gabbard

00:41:21.680 was in D.C.

00:41:22.940 during a

00:41:23.400 discussion hosted

00:41:24.460 in this

00:41:25.160 strangest of

00:41:26.080 all possible

00:41:26.800 worlds by

00:41:28.060 Russell Brand.

00:41:29.540 I had spoken

00:41:30.120 with her at

00:41:30.720 length, as in

00:41:31.880 the case of

00:41:32.380 Kennedy, on

00:41:33.300 my podcast,

00:41:34.480 although only

00:41:35.200 once.

00:41:36.080 What is

00:41:36.460 Lieutenant Colonel

00:41:37.600 Gabbard like

00:41:38.700 on the

00:41:39.380 personality side?

00:41:40.700 Moderately

00:41:41.220 extroverted,

00:41:42.240 higher in

00:41:42.980 assertiveness

00:41:43.800 than enthusiasm.

00:41:45.740 She is no

00:41:46.460 giggling girl.

00:41:48.080 Perhaps her

00:41:48.720 military experience

00:41:49.900 mitigated against

00:41:51.200 taking that

00:41:52.040 sometimes charming,

00:41:53.200 but often too

00:41:54.660 easy route,

00:41:55.980 markedly low in

00:41:57.100 neuroticism,

00:41:58.180 as befits a

00:41:59.040 woman who

00:41:59.500 pursued a

00:42:00.120 true military

00:42:00.980 career.

00:42:02.160 Agreeableness?

00:42:04.020 Ms. Gabbard

00:42:04.820 cares genuinely

00:42:06.180 about those she

00:42:07.480 served and

00:42:08.400 continues to

00:42:09.180 serve, although

00:42:10.260 I would say

00:42:11.280 she does so in

00:42:12.540 the temperamentally

00:42:13.480 conservative manner

00:42:14.520 that is part

00:42:15.460 patriotism and

00:42:16.740 part respect for

00:42:17.760 the intrinsic

00:42:18.460 dignity and

00:42:19.360 worth of every

00:42:20.220 person, rather

00:42:21.560 than in the

00:42:22.540 oft-cloying,

00:42:24.320 false, and

00:42:25.200 morally self-righteous

00:42:26.360 manner that so

00:42:27.560 often characterizes

00:42:28.900 the so-called

00:42:29.920 allies of the

00:42:31.440 oppressed.

00:42:32.500 On the side of

00:42:33.700 the progressive

00:42:34.220 left, she's also

00:42:35.540 very smart.

00:42:36.940 Without the more

00:42:37.680 showy brilliance of

00:42:38.980 Ramaswamy, who we

00:42:40.340 still have to

00:42:40.940 discuss, down to

00:42:42.440 earth in that

00:42:43.680 intelligence, and

00:42:45.240 is as conscientious

00:42:46.320 as you would hope

00:42:47.120 an ex-military

00:42:48.380 member and

00:42:49.260 influential political

00:42:50.500 leader might be.

00:42:52.920 Gabbard is the

00:42:53.700 sort of woman who

00:42:54.940 would make of

00:42:55.560 someone a

00:42:56.680 favorite aunt, a

00:42:58.260 close confidant, a

00:43:00.020 trusted friend.

00:43:01.340 If you wanted sane

00:43:02.480 advice, she'd be

00:43:05.200 your pick.

00:43:06.140 She doesn't have the

00:43:07.320 stunning entrepreneurial

00:43:08.760 flair of Musk,

00:43:10.580 Kennedy, or

00:43:11.180 Ramaswamy, but her

00:43:13.300 presence on the

00:43:14.420 X-Men team would

00:43:16.460 add to that excess of

00:43:18.240 plasticity some

00:43:20.000 true stability.

00:43:22.480 The other

00:43:22.900 personality,

00:43:23.740 Meta-trait.

00:43:24.780 This is particularly

00:43:25.600 important when the

00:43:26.960 team in question

00:43:27.820 will be tasked with

00:43:29.200 so much administrative

00:43:30.760 and managerial

00:43:31.700 responsibility.

00:43:33.140 It is great to

00:43:34.460 have someone around

00:43:35.320 like Vivek, for

00:43:36.340 example, who spins

00:43:37.780 off new ideas at a

00:43:40.100 constant rate, but I

00:43:41.600 bet on Gabbard to

00:43:43.420 implement effectively

00:43:44.760 and to pay attention

00:43:46.260 to all the details,

00:43:48.160 although Musk also

00:43:49.120 excels at that, to

00:43:50.580 walk the walk as

00:43:52.220 well as talk the

00:43:53.460 talk.

00:43:54.380 She's a very

00:43:54.980 difficult person not

00:43:56.220 to admire, not to

00:43:58.000 feel lesser than in

00:43:59.980 her presence.

00:44:01.060 She's solid,

00:44:02.160 competent,

00:44:03.100 straightforward,

00:44:04.680 admirable, brave,

00:44:06.520 patriotic, and

00:44:08.020 tough.

00:44:09.140 She'd be a truly

00:44:09.940 thoughtful presence in

00:44:11.200 the Trump X-Men

00:44:12.440 team, which might

00:44:13.940 otherwise tilt too

00:44:14.960 hard toward the

00:44:15.920 entrepreneurial and

00:44:16.940 revolutionary.

00:44:18.240 Slow down,

00:44:19.000 gentlemen.

00:44:20.440 Take some time and

00:44:21.500 think.

00:44:22.600 She has as well the

00:44:23.820 emotional resilience

00:44:24.900 not to panic, even

00:44:26.960 under pressure, not to

00:44:28.700 claim that the sky is

00:44:30.140 falling and rush

00:44:31.620 around madly and

00:44:32.520 counterproductively,

00:44:33.820 merely for the show

00:44:34.920 of work.

00:44:35.940 It doesn't hurt as

00:44:36.760 well that she is the

00:44:37.580 epitome of feminine

00:44:38.880 grace and attractiveness.

00:44:40.960 Wonder woman indeed.

00:44:42.780 Borrowing, if we

00:44:44.380 can, from the DC

00:44:45.800 world, the comic

00:44:47.440 books, and not the

00:44:48.940 city.

00:44:49.660 I could certainly

00:44:50.420 envision her as the

00:44:52.340 first truly deserving

00:44:53.740 female president of the

00:44:55.780 United States.

00:44:57.140 This brings us to one

00:44:59.420 Vivek Ramaswamy.

00:45:01.120 He and I recorded a

00:45:02.200 number of podcasts,

00:45:03.320 which I greatly

00:45:04.160 enjoyed.

00:45:05.160 That started before he

00:45:06.740 was running for office,

00:45:07.840 when we discussed

00:45:09.080 another notable

00:45:10.060 accomplishment, the

00:45:11.160 establishment of his

00:45:12.140 Strive Asset Management

00:45:13.880 Fund, designed to

00:45:15.580 give investors an

00:45:16.920 alternative to the

00:45:18.280 mongers of ESG,

00:45:20.400 stakeholder capitalism,

00:45:22.420 who are doing

00:45:22.940 everything they can to

00:45:24.560 sneak a particularly

00:45:26.380 pernicious form of

00:45:27.840 top-down, centrally

00:45:29.880 planned socialism into

00:45:32.420 the free market system,

00:45:33.720 so they can pretend to

00:45:35.800 be virtuous in a

00:45:37.000 manner hypothetically

00:45:38.440 unlike their greedy,

00:45:40.040 by-implication peers.

00:45:42.760 Not long after,

00:45:44.080 embarking on his

00:45:44.900 daring campaign for

00:45:46.100 president, Vivek began

00:45:48.020 a habit of approximately

00:45:49.320 quarterly appearances

00:45:50.540 on my YouTube channel.

00:45:52.800 That effort, despite its

00:45:54.900 unlikelihood, given his

00:45:56.600 unknown status as a

00:45:58.080 political contender,

00:45:59.600 unfolded very successfully,

00:46:02.360 bringing both the

00:46:03.200 candidate and his ideas

00:46:04.700 to a wide public audience,

00:46:06.900 and proving his

00:46:08.240 credibility as a young

00:46:09.440 and rising alternative

00:46:10.560 on the political scene.

00:46:12.640 What can I say about

00:46:13.620 Vivek's personality?

00:46:15.480 He is extroverted, both

00:46:17.020 on the assertive and

00:46:18.280 enthusiastic side,

00:46:20.160 characterized by more

00:46:21.220 positive emotion overall

00:46:22.700 than anyone else we have

00:46:24.160 discussed.

00:46:25.480 He's also very high in

00:46:27.260 openness, both to ideas

00:46:28.940 and, as far as I can tell,

00:46:30.840 on the artistic-cultural

00:46:32.480 side, although perhaps more

00:46:34.940 the former than the latter.

00:46:36.700 He shares those traits

00:46:37.860 with Trump, Musk, and

00:46:39.120 Kennedy, although less so,

00:46:41.140 although she is still far

00:46:42.620 above average in such

00:46:43.800 regard, than Gabbard.

00:46:45.840 He's more polite than

00:46:47.140 Trump, certainly more

00:46:49.100 measured in his speech,

00:46:50.740 less rough and provocative,

00:46:52.720 although also less witty,

00:46:55.020 although certainly not dull.

00:46:56.880 I would hazard a guess as

00:46:58.420 well that he is less

00:46:59.780 compassionate and people-centered

00:47:01.600 than both Trump and Musk.

00:47:03.800 Ramaswamy tends to stay in

00:47:06.700 the realm of ideas and is

00:47:08.620 clearly motivated on the

00:47:09.960 political side, primarily by

00:47:11.640 intellectual curiosity, as

00:47:13.840 well as the desire to see

00:47:15.160 things done better.

00:47:16.860 He appears low in

00:47:17.980 neuroticism and is highly

00:47:19.840 stress-tolerant, as those

00:47:21.660 are the same thing, unlikely

00:47:23.620 to withdraw, like Trump,

00:47:25.700 less depressive than Musk or

00:47:27.600 Kennedy, but also less

00:47:29.440 volatile than Trump, quite

00:47:31.620 stable temperamentally on the

00:47:34.200 emotional side.

00:47:36.020 Hey everyone, real quick

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00:48:25.000 you deserve.

00:48:25.760 That's a good feature in a

00:48:30.720 crisis, as noted in the case

00:48:32.960 of Gabbard.

00:48:34.180 I suspect he is high in

00:48:35.460 conscientiousness as well,

00:48:37.300 particularly on the side of

00:48:38.660 industriousness, which is half

00:48:40.760 that trait, the other half

00:48:42.540 being orderliness.

00:48:44.340 Ramaswamy is very successful

00:48:46.020 for a comparatively young man,

00:48:47.960 and he has done that in

00:48:49.400 consequence of his own

00:48:50.500 efforts.

00:48:51.580 This is not a fate that

00:48:52.880 befalls people who fail to

00:48:54.460 work dreadfully hard.

00:48:57.320 Cautions?

00:48:58.640 With regard to Vivek?

00:49:01.540 Mostly to do with his youth,

00:49:03.520 Mr. Ramaswamy is accustomed

00:49:05.020 to being the smartest person

00:49:06.460 in the room, and perhaps the

00:49:09.360 most successful.

00:49:10.920 This gives him a certain

00:49:12.160 brashness.

00:49:13.520 When I watched him in the

00:49:14.900 first round of the Republican

00:49:16.200 primaries, for example, he was

00:49:18.620 the candidate who received the

00:49:20.140 most positive responses from the

00:49:22.540 audience, as well as the most

00:49:24.260 negative.

00:49:25.120 The same was true, arguably, of

00:49:27.620 his compatriots on the stage.

00:49:29.700 I thought he risked, in his

00:49:31.820 provocative but undeniably

00:49:33.760 interesting approach, some

00:49:35.780 unnecessary enmity from those

00:49:38.080 same people.

00:49:39.180 And it is not clear to me that

00:49:40.700 this was a good long-term

00:49:42.180 strategy, given the high

00:49:44.280 possibility of sharing a bed

00:49:46.160 with at least some of them,

00:49:48.360 metaphorically speaking, in the

00:49:50.660 future.

00:49:51.620 I would say that as his

00:49:53.100 campaign progressed, he became

00:49:55.020 more moderate and careful in his

00:49:56.700 criticism of his fellow

00:49:57.840 Republicans, but also more

00:50:00.040 measured overall in his

00:50:01.620 utterances.

00:50:02.720 This is a sign of someone

00:50:04.660 humble enough to learn, despite

00:50:07.220 his confidence.

00:50:09.200 And that is a good thing.

00:50:10.660 He is, above all, like Musk,

00:50:13.320 Kennedy, and Gabbard, cognitively

00:50:15.940 gifted.

00:50:16.840 And that is also a good thing.

00:50:18.460 Complex jobs require highly

00:50:21.080 intelligent people to manage

00:50:23.200 them.

00:50:23.780 This is true of any job where the

00:50:25.260 demands constantly shift, and

00:50:27.680 governance at the highest level

00:50:29.240 certainly qualifies.

00:50:32.060 His intelligence showed most

00:50:34.000 particularity in his ability to

00:50:36.180 bring a genuine intellectual

00:50:37.600 excitement to the Republican

00:50:39.140 stage, in addition to accounting

00:50:41.640 for his preternatural early

00:50:43.900 business success.

00:50:45.100 If Ramaswamy went bad, became

00:50:48.620 disillusioned, resentful, angry.

00:50:51.920 It might be in the narcissistic

00:50:53.940 direction, like Trump, like so

00:50:56.160 many in the political,

00:50:57.560 entertainment, and media realm.

00:50:59.320 But the fact that he is part of

00:51:00.980 this team of high performers

00:51:02.880 means, number one, that he will be

00:51:06.020 required in the best possible way to

00:51:08.400 watch his words and actions, and

00:51:10.340 number two, that he will be

00:51:12.160 surrounded by the kind of wise

00:51:13.700 counsel that can help him mature

00:51:15.720 into a person even more

00:51:17.240 remarkable than he is now.

00:51:20.040 His youth might be regarded as a

00:51:22.100 hindrance insofar as he is less

00:51:24.200 experienced than he might be, even

00:51:26.460 arguably somewhat overconfident.

00:51:29.780 But it is also a marked advantage in

00:51:32.980 that Vivek is not living in 1995, or

00:51:36.780 even 2005, and is very much part of the

00:51:40.240 online digital generation during the

00:51:42.940 most rapid time of technological

00:51:44.820 transformation in human history.

00:51:48.260 I have not yet met J.D. Vance, although

00:51:51.740 we have a podcast planned.

00:51:54.160 I have read his book, however, much of

00:51:56.620 it twice.

00:51:57.420 I also watched his debate with

00:51:59.120 Governor Walz, the Democrat VP

00:52:01.600 candidate, very carefully.

00:52:03.780 The first thing to understand about

00:52:05.760 Vance, like Vivek, like Kennedy, like

00:52:08.860 Musk, is his intelligence.

00:52:11.460 You don't pull yourself out of the

00:52:13.580 serious backwoods of Appalachia and

00:52:16.520 graduate from law school at Yale without

00:52:19.200 some 95th or even 99th percentile

00:52:22.620 intelligence.

00:52:23.840 He also appears mature for his age, even

00:52:27.260 more so than Vivek, for whom he is perhaps a

00:52:30.120 match in raw cognitive power.

00:52:32.120 I suspect as well that J.D. is highly

00:52:35.160 conscientious, as it is that trait, second

00:52:38.220 only to intelligence, which best predicts

00:52:41.340 upward mobility.

00:52:42.800 And he is certainly the poster child for

00:52:44.820 the American dream in the land where

00:52:46.960 anyone can become president.

00:52:49.460 He is as well extroverted, particularly on

00:52:52.420 the assertiveness side rather than

00:52:54.260 enthusiastic, and appears both more

00:52:56.820 compassionate and perhaps more polite than

00:53:00.480 Trump and Vivek.

00:53:02.520 Vance writes, with real love of the people

00:53:05.700 in his life, in Hillbilly Elegy, which is

00:53:08.260 genuinely a people rather than idea-centered

00:53:12.040 book.

00:53:12.900 That is not a criticism, by the way.

00:53:15.580 Merely an observation, as I have already

00:53:18.120 commented positively on his intelligence.

00:53:20.500 I think the Republican vice presidential

00:53:24.160 contender will bring a whole other level of

00:53:27.460 concern for the working class to the Trump

00:53:30.540 X-Men team, not least because he is not

00:53:34.040 dismissive of his past, as so many who have

00:53:37.520 escaped upward tend to be.

00:53:39.960 Joining the elites in their contempt for the

00:53:42.160 workers and the inhabitants of the lower rungs of the

00:53:45.120 economic ladder, I detected a profound absence of

00:53:49.100 such dismissive sentiment in Hillbilly Elegy, a work

00:53:53.540 that was instead characterized by the substantive

00:53:57.220 gratitude of the well-integrated personality.

00:54:01.340 Vance is also a very good speaker.

00:54:03.780 That's the extroversion, as well as raw cognitive

00:54:06.280 power.

00:54:07.360 Fast on his feet and also no pushover, despite his

00:54:12.080 people-centered outlook, he holds his temper very well.

00:54:16.340 So he appears low in the neuroticism aspect of

00:54:19.700 volatility, more stable in that regard than the

00:54:22.780 Donald, whom he defended in his debate better than the

00:54:27.020 former president managed for himself, and has also

00:54:30.580 overcome many serious obstacles in his uphill climb.

00:54:35.500 Thus, he appears low as well in withdrawal.

00:54:38.440 Vance is another person who, like Tulsi Gabbard, is

00:54:43.100 unlikely to panic under difficult conditions.

00:54:46.500 This is a very positive attribute in the leader.

00:54:49.380 He is another person likely to be a steadying managerial

00:54:52.900 hand, balancing the dangerous brilliance of some of the

00:54:56.520 other members of the Trump coterie.

00:54:59.640 Do I have any reservations, having said all this, about

00:55:04.320 the new Trump X-Men team?

00:55:07.480 Of course.

00:55:08.760 First, it is a dreadfully creative consortium.

00:55:13.600 And it is not at all obvious that under normal conditions,

00:55:18.740 creative brilliance is the first thing to want in political

00:55:21.940 leaders who should mostly play an administrative role under

00:55:26.660 normal conditions.

00:55:28.260 However, the current situation in the U.S.

00:55:30.860 and abroad is not normal, and something out of the box may

00:55:35.360 well be necessary in consequence.

00:55:38.400 So I think the risk worth taking.

00:55:42.100 Second, any one of the strange and powerful mutant or superhero

00:55:47.600 personalities that have gathered themselves around Trump, as

00:55:51.520 well as the Donald himself, could go seriously wrong.

00:55:55.380 They are all strong-willed, charismatic, terribly able people, all of

00:56:01.260 whom appear more than capable of pushing their way forward, even

00:56:05.260 when in error and to hell with the consequences.

00:56:09.140 Such is the proclivity of genuine movers and shakers.

00:56:13.800 However, this is much more likely to happen in isolation.

00:56:17.840 The six of them together, Trump, Musk, Kennedy, Gabbard,

00:56:22.060 Ramaswamy, and Vance should be able to keep every single member in

00:56:27.760 check.

00:56:28.640 And that bodes well for the creativity, productivity, and

00:56:32.700 stability of the future Trump X-Men team administration.

00:56:37.740 And wouldn't it be a relief to Donald J, who is starting to be an

00:56:42.580 older man, to have some people around him he could admire and who

00:56:47.220 could really help him and who respect and listen to him and who

00:56:51.380 could necessarily and voluntarily bear some of what is obviously just too

00:56:56.900 much responsibility and possibility for one man?

00:57:01.560 Finally, and perhaps most importantly, wouldn't it be insanely

00:57:07.820 interesting?

00:57:09.680 Wouldn't it be, in a word, fun?

00:57:13.540 Wouldn't all you daring and oh-so-cinema-obsessed theatrical

00:57:18.380 Americans love to have the adventure that such a mutant group of strange

00:57:24.500 personalities running the show would offer for the next four years or

00:57:30.600 longer?

00:57:31.920 Trump, Musk, Kennedy, Gabbard, Ramaswamy, Vance?

00:57:37.640 That's a dream team by the standards of anyone looking for a wild and

00:57:43.300 compelling show.

00:57:45.040 God only knows what, with that same God's help, they could accomplish.

00:57:50.840 Every single one of those people is remarkable in their own right.

00:57:55.420 Everyone, a person whom it has been a privilege to watch, hear, and to some

00:58:00.920 degree get to know.

00:58:03.320 It is for such reasons, for what it is worth, that I hereby and wholeheartedly

00:58:07.960 endorse the Trump X-Men team.

00:58:11.760 I truly can't imagine anything more exciting and absurd than their ascendance.

00:58:16.960 Any possible political event, more preposterous and compelling.

00:58:22.300 Any future I could look forward to with more on-the-edge-of-my-seat excitement.

00:58:28.340 That's a great and amazing opportunity.

00:58:32.040 Remember this, however.

00:58:33.160 Remember, remarkable as they are, those DC-bound X-Men are going to need plenty of

00:58:39.220 help.

00:58:39.840 And all of you watching and listening should understand that failure looms unless you

00:58:46.040 are there to do your part.

00:58:48.500 Seriously.

00:58:49.700 It's not for nothing that you are all sovereign citizens of a free and remarkable

00:58:54.120 state charged with the responsibility and opportunity of your own governance.

00:58:59.180 Start by voting.

00:59:02.100 If all of you who are undecided just took up that initial light mantle of citizenship and

00:59:07.440 headed to the booths, or all of you too cynical above it all and faux cool to bother, the whole

00:59:15.700 world could change.

00:59:16.720 And in a remarkable way, this is going to be a thin margin of victory or defeat one way

00:59:23.700 or another.

00:59:24.140 Don't let what you hope for vanish in consequence of your inaction.

00:59:30.220 Play your part in bringing the Trump X-Men team to DC and let the cards fall where they

00:59:36.980 may.

00:59:38.080 What new possibilities might be revealed?

00:59:41.660 What new opportunities might emerge?

00:59:44.040 What vistas of productive peace be established if these six people took the reins?

00:59:49.720 I want to be around just to see it.

00:59:54.060 On with the show.

The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast - October 24, 2024

492. A Psychological Analysis of Trump’s Personality by Dr. Jordan B. Peterson

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