Art of the Deal Co-Author Tony Schwartz: Trump Does ‘Not Give a Damn’ That He’s Responsible for the Deaths of Thousands
Tony Schwartz, co-author of The Art of the Deal, joined CNN’s Brian Stelter Sunday to discuss what he thinks drives President Donald Trump psychologically — an issue raised in a new book from his niece Mary Trump.
Stelter opened the segment reviewing what Mary Trump wrote about her uncle’s narcissism and what else she thinks might be wrong with him. He said that while people see typos from Trump or some of his confused comments in interviews, “Mary Trump is suggesting something much deeper, much more serious.”
He brought on Schwartz and asked him why there’s “fear” in the media from discussing the president’s mental fitness.
“I think that the press and America as a culture has been incredibly slow to take a look at what influences people internally, at what the shaping influences are in their lives, the unconscious biases and blind spots and belief systems that grow out of your early experience,” Schwartz said. “I think as a consequence, the press has really abdicated a role that is absolutely critical right now.”
He continued on to say he would rename The Art of the Deal now as The Sociopath:
“I’ve just written a piece called The Psychopath in Chief on Medium… and tried to lay out what I think is the core diagnosis. And so does Mary Trump, which is he is a man without conscience and without empathy. And that is the most dangerous thing you can have in a human being. That’s what allows people to do what he’s doing right now, which is to be responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people and not give a damn. That’s how he can go forward with his policies, Brian, because he doesn’t actually care. If it’s the end always justifies the means, and the only end is being reelected — the problem is his time has passed. America is moving beyond him.”
Stelter told Schwartz “I don’t want to believe you” about Trump not caring about the loss of life.
“He’s incapable,” Schwartz said.
You can watch above, via CNN.
