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“As word spread Sunday of President Trump’s astonishing phone conversation with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger the day before, there was widespread speculation that the president had committed one or more crimes in his effort to overturn the results of the election in Georgia, including extortion and, ironically, election fraud,” AOL News reported on January 3, 2021, referencing federal criminal laws.

Trump appeared to threaten Raffensperger and his lawyer in the recorded group conversation. (Read story here.)

While AOL News didn’t mention it, Trump likely ran afoul of state laws, too (check them out here). This is significant because even if Trump pardons himself, or resigns at the last minute and gets Pence to do it, a federal pardon doesn’t keep him from being prosecuted for state crimes.

But the larger issue is, why does he do it? (And, in this case, there’s no question — or lack of evidence — of what he did. If there wasn’t a smoking-gun tape before, there is now.) The possibilities include:

1. Trump is desperate.
2. Trump is a criminal.
3. Trump is stupid.
4. Trump is insane.
5. All of the above.

Let’s tackle these one at a time.

1. Trump is desperate.

No question about this one. He’s desperate. Before the election, he used every dirty trick in the book (and some new ones) to win; and after the election he’s done everything he can think of to overturn the results, including (a) denial, (b) refusing to concede, (c) claiming he won, (d) alleging fraud that doesn’t exist, (e) insinuating he won’t leave the White House on January 20, (f) filing lawsuits, (g) cajoling legislators to flip electoral votes, (h) meeting with supporters plotting a military coup, (i) inciting armed insurrectionists to interfere when Congress counts the electoral votes, (j) pressuring congressmen and senators to object, (k) browbeating governors and local election officials, (l) repeating wild conspiracy theories, and (m) whatever else I’ve overlooked. His post-election behavior has “desperation” written all over it. Why he’s desperate to stay in power, I don’t know; his motivation, whatever it is, probably belongs under heading “4” below, anyway.

2. Trump is a criminal.

People who commit crimes usually are considered criminals, whether they’re prosecuted or not, and it sure looks like Trump committed at least two crimes in that phone call. In court, prosecutors have to prove intent, but what I’m asking — “does Trump have a criminal mind?” — is more general than what lawbooks call “mens rea,” or the intent to commit a specific act. (To clarify, you don’t have to intend to commit a crime, but only intend to commit an act constituting a crime. It’s an important distinction, because the fact Trump may not realize he’s breaking the law doesn’t make it less of a crime. In other words, stupidity isn’t a defense, unless you’re too stupid to form any intent at all.) Let’s start with the observable facts: He hides evidence, tries to block investigations, threatens witnesses, and talks about pardoning himself. Is this consistent with innocence? No. By all appearances, he realizes what he’s doing is wrong, but thinks he can get away with it, just like every other criminal under the sun.

3. Trump is stupid.

First, let’s get this out of the way: He’s clever at certain things. He’s learned some basic skills of demagoguery and race-baiting, and knows lie, cheat, and steal. But “stupid” describes not only a deficient IQ, but also a lack of knowledge. Trump is stunningly ill-informed. He doesn’t know much, principally because he only listens to what he wants to hear, which is primarily praise of himself. He doesn’t know what’s in the Constitution. He lacks a child’s capacity for following rules. When he talks into a speakerphone on a group call with a bunch of other people, some of whom undoubtedly are recording, and threatens a state official and his lawyer with criminal prosecution if they refuse to falsify election returns to flip Georgia’s (already certified and delivered) electoral votes, and there’s a choice of describing that as either very reckless or very stupid, I’ll vote for stupid.

4. Trump is insane.

Trump’s niece is a licensed clinical psychologist, and she thinks something is wrong with him. He had a twisted upbringing by a twisted father, and he certainly comes across as twisted. I think we can conclude with confidence that he’s twisted. I’ve pegged him as a sociopath — no feelings, empathy, or compassion; all-encompassingly self-centered; narcissistic and egomaniacal.  But the legal definition of insanity, for culpability purposes, which is the only reason being insane might be useful to him, is whether he knows right from wrong. That could be problematical, because in his universe, it’s questionable whether such concepts as “right” and “wrong” even exist. He certainly makes no distinction between them. It’s true he called Democrats “evil,” but that doesn’t mean he knows what it means. He also held up a Bible, but it’s a leadpipe cinch he’s never read “The Greatest Story Ever Told,” and doesn’t know what it’s about. Trump simply doesn’t think in terms of right and wrong. He never learned how. He thinks in terms of profit or loss, and “for me or against me,” and that’s it. He has no other frames of reference. He can’t compute right or wrong. For expert opinion on this subject, AOL News turned to Michael Bromwich, Harvard summa cum laude, Harvard Law, former assistant U.S. attorney and DoJ inspector general, who replied:

“Unless there are portions of the tape that somehow negate criminal intent, ‘I just want to find 11,780 votes’ and his threats against Raffensperger and his counsel violate 52 U.S. Code § 20511. His best defense would be insanity.”

So there you have it. How, exactly, do you negate criminal intent, if you’ve committed a criminal act? By pleading insanity. If that’s his only way out, I believe he’ll take it. On the other hand, his lawyers might feel better if he’s locked up.

So, I believe the answer is “5. All of the above,” and with that resolved, the next question is, what should be do with all of this psychopath’s fawning enablers, aiders, and abettors? It’s going to be a crowded (pick one) [   ] jail [   ] nut house.

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