The erratic Trump reactions that expose his volatile mental state

Donald Trump has defined himself for decades as a genius, a dealmaker and – above all – a winner. But against all sensible advice he tried to turn the midterms into a referendum on his presidency, and after a devastating loss, he now appears to be working through all five stages of grief at once. In the hours after the polls closed and results began to emerge, an unhappy Trump returned to a topic that increasingly preoccupies him – the falling ratings of Fox News. “FoxNews Ratings are way down (27%!) because they’re spending too much time covering the Trump Deranged Dumocrats!” he posted on Truth Social. “They’re way down, not because of me, but because they are AGAINST me!” Shorts As the extent of the Democrats’ triumph became increasingly clear, surpassing even the most optimistic of predictions in their favour, petulant Trump insisted: “I wasn’t on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE!” He then turned on Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican and close Trump ally who the President had just hours earlier described as an “exceptional Governor and man”. Trump claimed Abbott had only lost to Democrat Gina Hinojosa because he had “become a RINO [Republican In Name Only] in the last six months”. It was not immediately clear why Trump had attacked Abbott, although in recent months the two have disagreed on data centres. Shortly before 5am, a bruised Trump returned to berating Fox News for its coverage, accusing the network of making a poor choice in having Bill de Blasio “the Worst Mayor in the History of New York City, on air, ranting and raving like a Lunatic”. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Republican candidate for re-election, delivers a concession speech at an election night rally in Austin (Photo: Reuters/Kaylee Greenlee) “FoxNews bears responsibility for these losses by constantly and consistently putting on the Dumocrat opposition, and worse,” the President raged. Yet as the hours went on, Trump seemed unusually sanguine and philosophical about the results, at least for a time. Speaking to Fox News (a few hours after publicly savaging the channel), Trump said: “The Democrats did a good job, they fought hard.” Uncharacteristically, he acknowledged his greatest failure – the unpopular war with Iran – noting that people “didn’t like it” when they had to pay more for fuel as a result of the conflict. Trump even hinted at potential deals with the Democrats – something that seems deeply unlikely amid a mood of widespread public anger. “After a couple of months of vetoes, they’ll call and they’ll say, ‘how do we get this stuff done?’ and we’ll work together,” he predicted. But those who expect a new, bipartisan and collegiate Trump to emerge from the midterm humbling are likely to be disappointed. Soon after, he had bounced back to posting memes of a “VETO” cap and distancing himself from Republicans’ failure. The election, he reminded CBS News, was not about him after all. “We would have won easily if I was on the ballot. But I wasn’t,” he said, despite spending weeks telling voters the exact opposite. Few look to Trump for consistency – and what we have heard so far is unlikely to be the President’s final word on election results that will shape the rest of his presidency, or his legacy beyond it. And he has nodded to an additional role. “I’m going to become a Political Pundit, both good and bad, on the reasons these Candidates won and lost!” he posted. If we take Trump at his word, it sounds like he intends to spend the next few weeks weighing in on exactly why various Republican candidates lost. His verdicts might well be bracing. Democrats are preparing to make life difficult for Trump. Pictured, Senator-elect James Talarico and governor-elect Gina Hinojosa toast their stunning wins in Texas (Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images) Democrats have taken governorships across the country and will now control both the House of Representatives and Senate. This means Democrat lawmakers should be able to ensure that the second half of Trump 2.0 looks very different to its first two years. In exit polls taken across the country, voters gave their reasons. Top of the list was that they were unhappy with the economy and the cost of living, and blamed Trump for creating the circumstances causing the harm. Next on the list was concerns about the health of US democracy itself, after a relentless barrage of corruption scandals, ICE invasions and other legally questionable developments. The Democrats will soon be mounting numerous investigations into Trump, his family and his cabinet, as well as attempting to block his policy at every turn. The President is already spinning. One option that seems to be off the table is Trump trying to challenge or overturn the results, at least on any kind of large scale. He had suggested a willingness to try, but when voters opt for the Democrats by double-digit margins in state after state, including many administered by Republican authorities, it simply doesn’t work. Trump seems to have realised this, telling the New York Times that he was “absolutely willing” to accept the results. But Trump’s behaviour may now grow more erratic as he tries to fend off accusations, push his agenda and cement his legacy – and finally sees the extent of the mess he is in.