“Why put so much emphasis on facts, exaggeration is what makes the story interesting!” said a favorite aunt once when I tried to find out the truth of a funny family story she was telling two decades ago in front of a huge, laughing audience. Every member of my family cheered her on and it was the start of a pleasant evening.
Donald Trump’s interview with Elon Musk transported me back in time as I was immersed in the conversation. Both Trump and Musk know the importance of exaggeration in any narrative. Indian epic poets knew it. Herodotus knew it. And Boccacio, Chaucer and Shakespeare knew it too. Trump’s exaggeration, supported by his interviewer, became a good story for his supporters. They thought all 60 million of them were watching the live broadcast. That number is also an exaggeration.
It’s worth the risk
But why does Trump exaggerate every time, despite the fact-checkers standing by to take every word he utters seriously? Political storytelling is evaluated under different criteria than literary texts. Is it worth the risk? The answer is yes.
Trump is taking advantage of narcissism when he makes outlandish claims. To better understand this connection, let’s look at what experts have to say about narcissism. “For a person engaged in narcissism, there is only one reality: his own thought processes, feelings, and needs. The external world is not experienced or perceived objectively, that is, does not exist according to his own terms, conditions, and needs,” proposed Erich Fromm in the 1950s. Fromm also said that narcissistic people have a high sense of entitlement. This highlights the reason behind Trump’s constant resort to exaggeration.
Narcissism and politics
All politicians are narcissistic to some degree; this trait allows them to first enter politics and then remain in it. However, narcissism serves a highly specific function for certain political ideologies. It is important to understand the interrelationship between narcissism and a sense of entitlement when analyzing why Trump’s narcissism works for him politically. A study conducted by political scientists Peter K. Hatemi and Zoltan Fazekas found that “in the 2016 election, high entitlement reflected the mood of the general public, certainly among the working class, which voted Republican in large numbers”. Hatemi and Fazekas propose that narcissism may have a role in the rise of populist politics. Trump’s voters and those who know him are given a blanket of familiarity.
Put simply, Trump’s worldview, presented with an exaggerated sense of self-importance and confidence, wins over people. People who are always worried about their rights being taken away. And that’s why statements like the following work: “Our crime rate is skyrocketing.” Who cares that FBI reports show a steady decline in crime levels since 2020, his last presidential year? Add to that a provocative claim about Kamala Harris, “She wants to release all the prisoners that are in custody, and some of these people are really bad. It just came out today” and you’ve successfully created a sense of impending doom.
Trump, the Rescuer
Trump is counting on honest Americans to believe that their rights are being eroded by outsiders. So, he makes hyperbolic claims about illegal immigrants, such as “You have millions of people coming in a month” and “I believe there have been over 20 million people coming into our country”. He wants to convince people that they are living under extraordinary conditions, by saying things like “I think we have the worst inflation in 100 years. They say it’s 48 years, I don’t believe it”. Rights are being further eroded by outsiders—who among us, narcissistic or not, would consider that desirable?
People must despair that the narcissist, then, flaunting his exaggerated self-confidence, will come to the rescue. Trump wants people to believe that he, and only he, can solve these crises. Just as only he could “solve” the Iran and China crises for the United States. “Iran went bankrupt because I told China, ‘If you buy from Iran…’ oil, it’s all about the oil, that’s where the money is. ‘…if you buy oil from Iran, you’re not going to do any trade with the United States.’ And I meant it, and they said, ‘We’ll pass,’ and they didn’t buy the oil.” America can only be made great again when it is clearly established that it is doomed. And only Trump can make it great again.
Therefore, Trump’s interaction with Musk should not be seen as “bullshit” that has significantly weakened his presidential prospects, but rather as a tried and tested strategy designed to appeal to his constituents and swing voters. Whether it will help him repeat the 2016 result remains to be seen.
Until then, let us get lost in this twisted world of storytelling.
(Nishtha Gautam is a Delhi-based writer and academician.)
Disclaimer: These are the personal views of the author