A Two-Dimensional President

Matt Bai: “What we know of Trump, filtered through those closest to him, is that he’s given to passing tirades and is easily distracted, that he goes to bed early and watches ‘Fox & Friends’….But what profoundly moves or humbles him? When does he admit self-doubt, and to whom? What delights him or weighs him down?”

“When he was a TV performer, it was reasonable to assume that Trump was hiding some pivotal part of who he really was. Now you have to wonder if the persona is all there is… He seems always to be a man out of his element, uncomfortable…There must be private hours of sadness or self-doubt, humanizing moments he hides from the world. Inevitably, though, Trump responds publicly with the only real emotion he has consistently displayed as president — the bottomless rage against otherness that binds him tightly to his supporters. It is the closest he comes to a heartfelt humanity.”