2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Donald Trump has 5 kids with 3 different wives? [View all]Hortensis
(58,785 posts)sees EVERYTHING through a filter of how it makes him look good or bad. If it doesn't relate to him, he's not interested. He is as shallow as a spill of water on a table. He likely doesn't care about anything he talked about in his convention speech--because these things aren't about him. They're all words this salesman does know how to use to manipulate his chosen targets, "cards to play."
That's why this 70-year-old with an emotional age arrested some time in childhood is astonishingly ignorant. It's not that he can't learn, it's that he is usually unable to understand the significance of knowledge and care enough to bother. He doesn't know the difference between our president's powers and Putin's in his developing autocracy. He had no idea what Congress did; Ryan and others had to try to explain it. With limited success because of his very limited attention span from lack of interest. He didn't know what NATO was before he had to talk about it, and demonstrably still really, really doesn't understand or care, probably literally couldn't find most NATO nations on a well-labeled map because he doesn't have to do that on a stage. The man who wrote his first book for him says he really doubts Trump would be able to pay attention to a national security briefing, again unless he decided problems between China and Japan were somehow all about him.
As for what he believes, he thinks more nations should have nuclear bombs. Or does he? He must have thought that would make him sound strong when he said it. Now, when he realizes that it makes him sound stupid (or however he interprets that since he's far too superior to be or appear stupid), what does he think?
Yardwork, my question is, why on earth would anyone believe a person with a serious disabling personality disorder, a full basket of strong cluster B traits, would necessarily mean what he said ten minutes later? I suspect you're vastly underestimating just what a shocking, unbelievable thing America has done in nominating this dangerous, dysfunctional clown, cheering it for god's sake, with the whole world watching in horror and/or glee.