It did not take long for my warnings about Trump to cease being warnings and quickly become realities. One of the most disconcerting aspects of the Trump phenomenon is the oft perceived and oft ill-conceived notion that Trump has been “telling it like it is” all along. I have argued repeatedly that he is not telling it like it is, but rather repeating long held sentiments of a disaffected portion of the population, of which he has been taking advantage of. Throughout his campaign and continuing on through his transition to office, Trump has had a tenuous (at best) relationship with the truth. But, that mattered little in the minds of his supporters. They were convinced that he was speaking on their behalf. Well, we are starting to see evidence of the contrary and evidence of what I have been arguing all along. Trump is only speaking on behalf of his ego.

This is the most important tool for anyone analyzing Trump’s political prospects. It matters not what he says or what he claims to be, it matters only what he does and what he is. And what he does and has always done throughout his career and his entire life is feed his unfathomably large appetite for attention. This is the main craving of Freud’s ego, and Trump himself could not be more pronounced in his unintended verification of Freud’s main theories of the ego. He is a walking, talking example of them. So, before anyone can begin to claim an understanding of Trump and his actions, they must first take into account his primary egotistical desires, which are attention-based and entirely lacking in moral or political conviction. The egotistical persons among us view convictions and moral standards as malleable, only there to suit one’s current situation. This is what Trump has been doing his entire life.

During the campaign, Trump called repeatedly for his opponent to be put in jail. The rhetoric behind this predisposed any need for a trial, or a presumption of innocence before allowing for a presumption of guilt (a direct refutation of the civil rights guaranteed in our Constitution, but that is beside the point.) His supporters ate it up. They broke out in chants. They fell for the lies. They made the foolish assumption that his convictions would outweigh his ego. But, as soon as Trump no longer needed their support, their vote, he was quick to back off from his constantly repeated charges against her. He no longer wishes for her to be jailed. It does not benefit him as much as President elect as it benefitted him on the campaign trail.

The same is true of his stance on torture. On the campaign trail, his tough talk about torturing suspected terrorists and their families helped him draw attention to himself, as did all of his most outrageous claims. They were all meant to feed his ego and garner time in front of the same mainstream media he publically claims to loath, all the while relishing in the glow of their cameras. But, as soon as it no longer meant camera time, he backed off his promotion of the use of torture. It no longer suits his needs. Again, for the egotistical person, it is all about attention in the here and now and nothing to do with beliefs or convictions. He never really felt that torture was a good idea, but he knew it would help him win votes.

Trump also promised to “drain the swamp” and put the proverbial smack-down on Wall Street crooks, career politicians, and lobbyists. Yet, when it came down to it, he road in on a wave comprised of incumbent members of Congress, many of whom are career politicians. He has appointed some of those career politicians to posts within his administration and also included some Wall Street veterans and lobbyists. He is now surrounded with the same people he promised to run out of Washington.

One by one, Trump’s campaign promises will fall by the wayside. They will fall victim to his ego, as many have foreseen. It is really only a question of which promise he will ignore next. Is it the border wall? Is it the 35 percent tariff on imports? Is it the deportation of millions? Who knows? But, I promise you, there will be many more of his supposed convictions that fail to be convictions at all. They never were. They were only spoken to garner your support, which he will quickly bypass in favor of his own aggrandizement. The elections are over middle-Americans, and he no longer needs you. You never meant much to him in the first place. His ego always comes first.

James Bliss is a Jamestown resident.