"He Doesn't Give A F*ck"

Some troubling insights into unfit sociopath Donald "Rump" Trump's mindset these days are offered by Gabe Sherman of Vanity Fair on Rump feeling free to act on his impulses:

"Even before he decided to launch a trade war and roll the nuclear dice by agreeing in the course of a West Wing afternoon to a risky sit-down with Kim Jong Un, Donald Trump was telling friends he was tired of being reined in....With the departures of Hope Hicks and Gary Cohn, the Trump presidency is entering a new phase—one in which Trump is feeling liberated to act on his impulses. 'Trump is in command. He’s been in the job more than a year now. He knows how the levers of power work. He doesn’t give a fuck,' the Republican said. Trump’s decision to circumvent the policy process and impose tariffs on imported steel and aluminum reflects his emboldened desire to follow his impulses and defy his advisers. 'It was like a fuck-you to Kelly,' a Trump friend said. 'Trump is red-hot about Kelly trying to control him.'” (emphasis added)

Mark Landler of the New York Times describes the lead up to yesterday's announcement of a meeting between Kim Jong-un and Rump: 

"Behind the scenes, events unfolded even more haphazardly. Mr. Trump was not scheduled to meet [S. Korea National Security Advisor] Mr. Chung until Friday, but when he heard that the envoy was in the West Wing seeing other officials, the president summoned him to the Oval Office, according to a senior administration official.

Mr. Trump, the official said, then asked Mr. Chung to tell him about his meeting with Mr. Kim. When Mr. Chung said that the North Korean leader had expressed a desire to meet Mr. Trump, the president immediately said he would do it, and directed Mr. Chung to announce it to the White House press corps...By day’s end, dazed White House officials were discussing whether Mr. Trump would invite Mr. Kim to come to the United States. That seemed entirely likely, the senior administration official said, though American officials doubt the North Korean leader would accept." (emphasis added)

To be reminded that someone with such a lack of impulse control, pent up anger, and deep disregard for norms has his finger on the trigger of America's arsenal is jarring and deeply troubling.