Crazy Like a Fox

The Strategic Advantage of Being Unhinged

In a 60 Minutes interview, Nancy Pelosi said Trump is “deranged” and unhinged.” She wished, and rightly so, to remove President Trump from office and believed the 25th Amendment was the fastest route.

But is this declaration of insanity a good idea? Or is it, as I argue here, a dangerous precedent that could easily backfire and gum up all future prosecution of the president.

As a way of understanding this, consider the scenario below. It’s certainly not what I’d wish for our nation, but it could happen and is worthy of our consideration.

Trump, if anything, is strategic and sees the world often in purely strategic ways. So let’s look at his predicament from a strategic point of view. From his lawyers’ point of view.

As they review a stack of allegations they pause and one says, wow, this guy is really vulnerable. Yea, the other lawyer agrees. He’s been stripped of his most powerful defense, his presidency. And now, his second line of defense — a mob attacking the capitol, threatening congressional members — well, that failed too. And there’s so much evidence, so many facts, really hard and fast facts, verified, and validated, with videos and recorded phone calls.

So, the lawyers think hard. It’s gonna be hard saying he’s “not guilty.” It’s just not believable. What else can we plea, one asks?

How about the insanity plea, the other asks, you know, non compos mentis? It’s just about the only defense left.

Yes, that may work. Just look at all the collaborating witnesses!

You know Nancy Pelosi is not the only one rifting on Trump’s mental instability. There’s a host of writers and mental health experts declaring Trump crazy, as did Peter Weher in The Atlantic.

Even his good friend Geraldo Rivera is shaking his head at Trump's faltering grasp on reality.

So the lawyers begin preparing their insanity plea in a court of law. They practice telling the judges: Donald J. Trump is, sadly, your honor, not of a sound mind. He’s not the man he was. So he can admit to the crimes, all the crimes. Yes, he can tell the judge, he did incite a mob to insurrection, he did conspire with Russia, he did knowingly intimidate foreign leaders and state officials.

They are enjoying their own rift.

So, your honor, he had no idea those crimes were wrong. He certainly didn’t mean to hurt anyone. Besides he’s exhausted, exhausted from all the criticism he’s had to face. Your honor, wouldn’t you be a little deranged?

The lawyers might even call on Nancy Pelosi as a material witness. She knows this is true, right, he’s unhinged. Trump would love it. The lawyers hi-five each other exclaiming, “What irony!”

Trump himself recently warned that invoking the 25th Amendment might backfire on those who say he’s unfit because he’s unhinged.

“Be careful what you wish for,” he said.

Most courts of course would reject the argument that Trump was of “diminished capacity,” and thus not responsible for his actions. Might our Supreme Court though look favorably on such a plea?

This is why I argue that impeachment is truly the only just avenue for those who commit sedition and instigate a rebellion. Let us all be careful about how we explain his actions.

If you’re unhinged, his lawyers might argue, can you also be responsible?