Is society really this dense?

[Broken System]

Some people call him Hitler. Some people worship him. Some people think he's racist and sexist. Some people say he's the politically incorrect hero who "says it like it is." Some people say his views are too extreme for the country or the Republican party. But the one thing almost nobody seems to think is that Donald Trump is a liar. Even Ted Cruz said something like, "He could say two different things and would pass the lie detector both times." This is ridiculous! Donald Trump in his own book literally states that you get what you want by telling people what they want to hear. Donald Trump has held dramatically different political views in the past. His success may be attributed to his "small loan," but dumb people don't keep major companies off the ground. Donald Trump is a smart man who knows exactly what he is doing. He spotted the large majority of the Republican party disgusted with the system and scripted his entire platform to feed into their anger. There's no reason to believe that Donald Trump actually agrees with anything that comes out of his mouth, and in all likelihood, would shape this country in a way that would benefit his company the most. Trump supporters, don't you just hate when politicians do back alley deals with businesses to support their agenda? Well, now you won't have to worry about that at all, because Trump is the corrupt businessman who could be sitting in the presidential seat himself. He's a liar. He lies to get what he wants. What's so hard to believe that humans are capable of lying? Are you Trump lovers and haters so invested in painting Trump into such a hero/villain that you would feel foolish in realizing that you have been played? And thus your brain automatically rejects the possibility because you are in denial of how foolish you are possibly being? Seriously, what the heck, people? All of you Trump lovers and haters share this stupidity in common and you are more alike than you think.

[Maxwell]

I don't know what you are trying to say. Are you saying people don't think Trump is liar? That is obvious.

[Meclazine for Israel]

http://grammar.about.com/od/pq/g/Paragraph-Break.htm

[Fuzzy Bear]

Society only has the choices of the folks that offer themselves to run for office.  Trump offered himself, and whatever he has espoused in the past, his beliefs on the issues he emphasizes (trade, immigration, foreign policy) have been both consistent and coherent.

[Reaganfan]

What is a liar, exactly?

Bush was called a liar, but a miscalculation isn't a lie unless it's a malicious intent miscalculation.

In other words, if you think there is someone in your house and you call the cops and nobody had broken in, you were mistaken, you didn't maliciously lie.

I think Trump's lack of political correctness gives off an impression of brutal honesty.

[Simfan34]

But the one thing almost nobody seems to think is that Donald Trump is a liar. Even Ted Cruz said something like, "He could say two different things and would pass the lie detector both times."

What are you talking about? In the same breath Cruz called Trump a "pathological liar".

[Cassius]

Well, obviously, Trump is a liar. But then, so were most of his opponents in the primary, and so will be his opponent in the general election. The great thing about Trump is the breathtaking audacity and humour of his untruths.

More to the point, whilst Trump is obviously projecting an image, it's very difficult to be completely two-faced - I imagine that as President he would pursue the basic, broader principles of his agenda the best he can, cutting big deals along the way as he does.

[Meclazine for Israel]

Well, obviously, Trump is a liar.

I have to say a lot of people have been asking this question. No, really. A lot of people come up to me, and they ask me. They say, 'are you a liar? And I tell them, look, we know what lying is. We've had almost eight years of the worst kind of lying you can imagine. Oh, my God, I can't believe it.

Unbelievable.

Ted Cruz saying Ben Carson was dropping out. It's terrible. It's just terrible.

Look, if you want to know how much of a liar Ted Cruz is, do you want to know that? I'll tell you. First of all the Ted, by the way, I love the Tedmeister. His JFK assassinating father, not so much. How did he get away with that. Unbelievable.

He's probably my favorite Cruz, Ted, no he is my favorite republican.

You know what, he's probably more like Little Marco with a lot more Gb of RAM. A lot. If I'm being honest, I mean, if I'm being honest. I like those two. Except when Marco Rubio lies, now he's a liar that I don't like. Though, I probably shouldn't say that.

Melania said he's a nice guy, but he's like, on and on and on, like that. He's like a computer! You know what I mean? He's like a computer. I don't know. I mean, you know. So, we have all these liars and we put them in a political debate.

Did you know that? We can buy them through funding agreements but they don't tell you that, and I'll tell you, no one is better at the process of buying peoples opinions than me. You wouldn't believe it.

So, i'm gonna be the best President of the USA ever, believe me.

Unbelievable.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

Saying Trump is a liar, while true, is a massive understatement. He's a psychopath.

Looks at the psychopathy checklist and do you own comparison:
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Psychopathy_Checklist&oldid=657640926#Items

[Santander]

Trump takes lying to a whole new level - he tells so many lies in such quick succession that it becomes impossible to call him out on his lies because he's told 5 more lies by the time you can call him out on it. It's really quite brilliant.

[ProudModerate2]

Saying Trump is a liar, while true, is a massive understatement. He's a psychopath.

Looks at the psychopathy checklist and do you own comparison:
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Psychopathy_Checklist&oldid=657640926#Items

Completely agree with you.

[SillyAmerican]

Society only has the choices of the folks that offer themselves to run for office.  Trump offered himself, and whatever he has espoused in the past, his beliefs on the issues he emphasizes (trade, immigration, foreign policy) have been both consistent and coherent.

Yes.

Exactly what does "Broken System" think Trump will fail to do? Get our immigration policy under control? Improve the job situation? Bolster our military? Support our veterans? What, exactly, will Trump fail to address? If you think he's focused on the wrong things, or you think he can't get done what he says he'll get done, well, make your case.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

What is a liar, exactly?

Bush was called a liar, but a miscalculation isn't a lie unless it's a malicious intent miscalculation.

"It was just an innocent miscalculation."

[Broken System]

Society only has the choices of the folks that offer themselves to run for office.  Trump offered himself, and whatever he has espoused in the past, his beliefs on the issues he emphasizes (trade, immigration, foreign policy) have been both consistent and coherent.

Yes.

Exactly what does "Broken System" think Trump will fail to do? Get our immigration policy under control? Improve the job situation? Bolster our military? Support our veterans? What, exactly, will Trump fail to address? If you think he's focused on the wrong things, or you think he can't get done what he says he'll get done, well, make your case.

There you go again, under the impression that Trump is telling the truth. I never said that Trump was not capable of getting the things done that he claims that he would do. It's a simple matter of principle that he doesn't want to do the things he says. If every week I say that I am going to paint my shed, but I never purchase a bucket of paint because I secretly don't want to do any work, is the shed ever going to be painted? Likewise, Trump may say he will build a wall, but actually have no interest in building one at all. Therefore, no wall will be built. What's so hard for you to understand about how lying works? Trump's failure to do the things he says isn't a matter of capability, it's a matter of his own self-interest.

[SillyAmerican]

Society only has the choices of the folks that offer themselves to run for office.  Trump offered himself, and whatever he has espoused in the past, his beliefs on the issues he emphasizes (trade, immigration, foreign policy) have been both consistent and coherent.

Yes.

Exactly what does "Broken System" think Trump will fail to do? Get our immigration policy under control? Improve the job situation? Bolster our military? Support our veterans? What, exactly, will Trump fail to address? If you think he's focused on the wrong things, or you think he can't get done what he says he'll get done, well, make your case.

There you go again, under the impression that Trump is telling the truth. I never said that Trump was not capable of getting the things done that he claims that he would do. It's a simple matter of principle that he doesn't want to do the things he says. If every week I say that I am going to paint my shed, but I never purchase a bucket of paint because I secretly don't want to do any work, is the shed ever going to be painted? Likewise, Trump may say he will build a wall, but actually have no interest in building one at all. Therefore, no wall will be built. What's so hard for you to understand about how lying works? Trump's failure to do the things he says isn't a matter of capability, it's a matter of his own self-interest.

Yup. And what you've described is exactly how things have been being run thus far. Congress and the President have been talking about immigration reform for 30 years now. Have you seen anything get done? So folks are now saying it's time to try something different. Honestly, the only thing that surprises me is that it's taken so long...

[pbrower2a]

What is a liar, exactly?

My definitions;

1. Someone who deliberately contradicts objective reality.
2. Someone who says things in a way meant to deceive.
3. Someone who sticks to a proven falsehood that one thought true once it is shown false.
4. Someone who gives reckless statements about reality with feigned authority.
5. Someone who coaches others to deceive.
6. Someone who edits truth to turn it into falsehood (like cutting out negatives and qualifications.

There are others.

One is excused for saying falsehoods to protect classified secrets or confidential material, deny someone access to something harmful, protect oneself or other innocent people from physical harm, protect others' assets (except from legitimate entities like tax authorities, courts of law, creditors, or ex-spouses), protect one's human rights, or protect delicate egos. Mistaken perceptions are not lies.   

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It becomes a lie when he sticks to it once it is proved false.

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If you were reckless about believing that there was a burglary, as by setting the alarm at a level of sensitivity at which a cat sneaking around for a place from which to ambush prey would set it off, and you are then told that some cat set it off and you did not change the setting and subsequently called the police about the break-in, then you would be a liar.   



I think Trump's lack of political correctness gives off an impression of brutal honesty.
[/quote]

[Torie]

What is a liar, exactly?

Bush was called a liar, but a miscalculation isn't a lie unless it's a malicious intent miscalculation.

In other words, if you think there is someone in your house and you call the cops and nobody had broken in, you were mistaken, you didn't maliciously lie.

I think Trump's lack of political correctness gives off an impression of brutal honesty.

It is a pretty good hat trick if you can "give off an impression of brutal honesty," when you flip flop on policy positions from pillar to post, day to day, as if you forgot what you just said. It seems to me to either project opportunistic disingenuousness or dementia. Which one might it be do you think?

[ElectionsGuy]

Trump has a 76% mostly false/fully false rating from Politifact. He's a pretty good liar.

[pbrower2a]

Saying Trump is a liar, while true, is a massive understatement. He's a psychopath.

Looks at the psychopathy checklist and do you own comparison:
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Psychopathy_Checklist&oldid=657640926#Items

He seems to fit facet 1:


    Glibness/superficial charm
    Grandiose sense of self-worth
    Pathological lying
    Cunning/manipulative

and facet 2


    Lack of remorse or guilt
    Emotionally shallow
    Callous/lack of empathy
    Failure to accept responsibility for own actions


very well.

Facet 3 is more ambiguous:


    Need for stimulation/proneness to boredom
    Parasitic lifestyle
    Lack of realistic, long-term goals
    Impulsivity
    Irresponsibility

The first of them seems to fit.

Facets 4 and 5 -- seem not to fit. 

Narcissism is obvious. Narcissism increasingly looks like a milder (but still destructive) form of sociopathy.

[Ebsy]

Anyone who thinks that they not only have what it takes to be President of the United States but also are a better, more competent choice than anyone else running has to be pretty damn narcissistic.

[SillyAmerican]

Anyone who thinks that they not only have what it takes to be President of the United States but also are a better, more competent choice than anyone else running has to be pretty damn narcissistic.

Exactly. Seems kind of silly to try to pin something like that solely on Trump, yes?

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

Saying Trump is a liar, while true, is a massive understatement. He's a psychopath.

Looks at the psychopathy checklist and do you own comparison:
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Psychopathy_Checklist&oldid=657640926#Items

He seems to fit facet 1:


    Glibness/superficial charm
    Grandiose sense of self-worth
    Pathological lying
    Cunning/manipulative

and facet 2


    Lack of remorse or guilt
    Emotionally shallow
    Callous/lack of empathy
    Failure to accept responsibility for own actions


very well.

Facet 3 is more ambiguous:


    Need for stimulation/proneness to boredom
    Parasitic lifestyle
    Lack of realistic, long-term goals
    Impulsivity
    Irresponsibility

The first of them seems to fit.

Facets 4 and 5 -- seem not to fit. 

Narcissism is obvious. Narcissism increasingly looks like a milder (but still destructive) form of sociopathy.

Many of Facet Three's components are demonstrated repeatedly by Trump's campaign:

   Lack of realistic, long-term goals
Aside from his "big, beautiful wall" that will magically solve some vaguely defined problems, Trump has presented no realistic long-term goals, just grandiose generalities.

    Impulsivity
Skipping a debate because he doesn't like the moderator? Talking about the size of his genitalia in a nationally televised debate?

    Irresponsibility
Making public promises and then denying he'd ever made them?


Factet Four's list includes:

    Poor behavioral controls

Is anyone seriously going to claim that debate-skipping, dick-size comparing, insult-flinging Trump has good control over his behavior?

    Early behavioral problems

    Juvenile delinquency

http://www.investopedia.com/university/donald-trump-biography/donald-trump-early-life-and-education.asp

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The other factors include:

Many short-term marital relationships

Pretty obvious in a man on his third trophy wife.

and,


    Promiscuous sexual behavior
http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/politics/ben-sasse-donald-trump-infidelities/

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The only items on the list that Trump does not appear to match are those directed at already-convicted criminals: Revocation of conditional release and Criminal versatility.