Columns

Trump lies for the pure pleasure of it; he just can't help himself. Often his lies are difficult to fight, destructive in their effects, and almost impossible to correct if they resonate strongly enough with his true believers, which Trump’s mostly do.  

His political incorrectness is what appeals to many of his supporters. 

Saying that Trump has a "casual relationship with the truth," The Huffington Post listed the 100 most egregious falsehoods. Of course, this is just a small sampling of his lies as they come so fast and so often, that fact checkers have a difficult time keeping up.  

When he wants to spread an idea, he just says it over and over again. The repetition just gets in some people's heads. Even if the media refutes the lie, it may serve only to solidify the lie in some people's minds. For example, if the San Francisco Chronicle said, "It is not true or is unproven that President Obama spied on Trump," the Chronicle may accomplish the opposite result as later on the recipient of the lie may forget the first part of the sentence -- "it is not true or is unproven" -- recalling only "Obama spied on Trump."  

Remember, as early as 2011, Trump was a leader of the “birther movement,” questioning whether Obama was born in the U.S. Yet, it wasn’t until September 2016 that he finally acknowledged that, yes, Obama was born in the U.S. (He was born in Hawaii in 1961.) He didn’t apologize for his lie. However, as late as mid-December 2016, a Economist/YouGov poll showed that 42% of self-identified Republicans still believed that Obama was born in Kenya, 

Maybe Trump’s lies are catching up to him. A Quinnipiac University National poll found that 60% believed Trump is not honest. And according to a recent Gallup poll his support has dropped to about 38%. Yet for these 38% ardent supporters, they just don’t seem to care whether he lies. 

In sum, one comment from a Trump supporter is revealing, ”You all can defeat Trump next time, but not if you keep mocking us, refusing to listen to us, and cutting us out. It's Republicans, not Democrats, who will take Trump down." Hopefully, the Democratic National Committee is listening and vigorously preparing for the mid-term and beyond elections.