There’s been a bit of a premature conclusion by liberals, and maybe conservatives as well, concerning the former President’s recent statement on declassifying documents. First, a transcript:
“There doesn’t have to be a process, as I understand it,” he told Hannity. “You’re the president of the United States. You can declassify just by saying, ‘It’s declassified.’ Even by thinking about it.” [yahoo! news]
My bold. Steve Benen accepts that’s what Trump meant:
To be sure, it’s easy to laugh at the idea that a president has a telepathic declassification ability. Indeed, people probably should laugh because this is deeply foolish, even by Trump standards.
Jim Underdown, a Center for Inquiry guy, takes it quite seriously, as only a skeptic can:
This is, of course, tantamount to the ex-president claiming that the declassification process can be executed via telepathy– which puts him squarely into my world.
Our Center for Inquiry Investigations Group has tested many alleged “telepaths” over the years for our CFIIG $250,000 Paranormal Challenge. Consider us available as expert witnesses for any trials where this claim might arise.
One of my few shots of a lupine this year.
But how is telepathy usually defined? It’s all about communication without any of the intervening modalities, whether they be talking, writing, using sign language, or raising an eyebrow. Instead, through the power of your brain, you communicate with someone else.
And Trump makes no mention of communications. None. All he’s saying, as ridiculous as it is, is that if he muses that a document should be declassified, then it is.
And there’s a subtlety, a nuance here, which maybe I’m imagining, but this subtlety ties in with his possible religious ideas. Remember, being brought up in the church run by Norman Vincent Peale means his idol may be money.
And, if he thinks he’s high up in the hierarchy of dollar worshipers, perhaps he thinks that just thinking an order is as good as executing it like a plebe would have to do. What we may be dealing with here is a minor case of God complex.
And that may explain his odd, arrogant behaviors.
