Countless gallons of ink have been spilled speculating about what portions of Trump’s campaign are real, and what is an act. Here is my working hypothesis:
1. Thin-skinned, publicity-seeking narcissist: Real. He’s been like that all of his life. Not even Meryl Streep can act that well.
2. Social Darwinian: Real. Most of his ideology, if you could call it that, springs from his clear belief that life rewards the strong and ruthless (i.e., him), and punishes the weak.
3. Mercantilist: Real. Trump equates trade to athletics and concludes that countries with trade surpluses are “winners.” That is a deeply weird opinion, but there is no reason to doubt that he sincerely believes it.
4. Bigot: Mostly opportunist. There is some evidence supporting the notion that Trump has been a racist all of his life, but I don’t find it compelling. His immigration stance is based on a concept that worked for Mitt Romney in the GOP primaries in 2012; his law and order stance only emerged late in the campaign, and was stolen from Richard Nixon.
5. Authoritarian: Evolving. There was no reason to believe that he didn’t accept democratic norms at the beginning of his campaign, but things are different now, due largely to the logic inherent in his candidacy, which, given his lack of qualifications and indifference to GOP values, had to emphasize his ability to get things done.