Opinion: The GOP’s Habit of Projection—An Example in Action

If Donald Trump’s political career and the MAGA movement have accomplished anything of lasting value (and on another day I might argue that they have not), it has been to popularize a key concept from psychology: projection.

Projection is defined as “a defense mechanism where a person unconsciously attributes their own unacceptable thoughts, feelings, or traits to someone else.”
It is a concept vividly demonstrated by the hypocrisy often displayed by:

• The Trump administration
• The broader Republican Party
• And, believers in the MAGA movement

There are several unsubstantiated claims being made about the Democratic Party—claims that, upon closer examination, better describe today’s Republican Party.

Claim 1: Democrats are “intentionally misrepresenting our nation as a democracy rather than the republic which it is.”

While most Americans use “democracy” and “republic” interchangeably, the distinction is academic:

• In a pure democracy, the majority rules with few protections for individual rights.
• In a republic, the majority still rules, but actions are constrained by a governing document—our Constitution.

Yet it is the Republican-led Trump administration that acted as if it had a pure democratic mandate to do whatever it pleased, unconstrained by law.

Examples include:

• Declaring the 14th Amendment’s birthright citizenship provision invalid.
• Usurping Congress’s Article I powers to control federal spending.
• Defying court authority on multiple occasions.
• Detaining and deporting residents without the due process guaranteed by the 5th and 14th Amendments.
• Pressuring colleges and law firms to alter policies to fit Trump’s agenda.
• Punishing or coercing media outlets (CBS, NPR, PBS) critical of Trump—violating First Amendment protections.
• Using the presidency for personal profit, in violation of the Emoluments Clause.

Claim 2: Democrats are “promoting, condoning, and even participating in illegal activities including violence, destruction of property, murder, and even assassination.”

(Pause for laughter.)

Let’s examine the record:

• The Republican Party’s leader, Donald Trump, was convicted on 34 felony counts at the state level, with more than 40 additional federal charges still pending at the time of his election.
• Hundreds of January 6th rioters—many of whom confessed to or were convicted of violent crimes—were pardoned by Trump.
  • The January 6th insurrection caused $2.7 million in damage to the U.S. Capitol.
  • 140 police officers were injured.
  • Six people died, including five officers and one rioter.
• The alleged would-be assassin who attempted to shoot Trump in Pennsylvania came from a Republican household.
• The Republican-controlled Congress recently adjourned early to avoid voting on a resolution to release files related to convicted pedophiles Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
  • Epstein’s records reportedly include Trump’s name multiple times, as the two men were close friends for years.
  • The self-described “big tent” of the Republican Party, it seems, now shelters not only extremists but also pedophiles and their enablers.

I cannot say definitively whether Donald Trump personally engaged in criminal acts with Epstein’s victims—but it is undeniable that he knew what was happening.

Author: Tim M.