General Discussion

But, scary as it is, I came to the conclusion that the man was profoundly mentally ill not long after he came down that escalator. I'm a clinical psych drop out, so can claim no expertise, but a simple review of DSM criteria, as in this 2017 post, supports the conclusion.

Tragically, the "sane washing" of his behavior is a product of hard-wired mental processes. Interpreting and making sense of behaviors is essential to survival. The mental shortcuts include interpreting behavior through a familiar lens -- a lens that is defined by "normalcy." Our brains are biased to look for internal motives over external factors. It's a conundrum. A person who managed to get enough votes to become president can't possibly be profoundly mentally ill, so people come up with other theories of his behavior.