Trump’s Incoherent Speeches Raise Concerns: ‘This Is…Impossible to Follow’
(Evan Vucci/AP)
In his recent public appearances, former President Donald Trump has exhibited an increasing level of incoherence, raising alarm among political analysts about his potential return to the White House. MSNBC columnist Zeeshan Aleem highlighted the issue in a column published Tuesday, using a recent speech in Potterville, Michigan, to emphasize Trump’s growing lack of clarity.
Aleem pointed out that Trump has always been known for his rambling speeches, but now, his statements appear to have reached a new level of confusion. In his article, Aleem quoted a particularly baffling excerpt from Trump’s address in Michigan:
“She destroyed the city of San Francisco, it’s — and I own a big building there — it’s no — I shouldn’t talk about this but that’s OK I don’t give a damn because this is what I’m doing. I should say it’s the finest city in the world — sell and get the hell out of there, right? But I can’t do that. I don’t care, you know? I lost billions of dollars, billions of dollars. You know, somebody said, ‘What do you think you lost?’ I said, ‘Probably two, three billion. That’s OK, I don’t care.’
They say, ‘You think you’d do it again?’ And that’s the least of it. Nobody. They always say I don’t know if you know. Lincoln was horribly treated. Uh, Jefferson was pretty horrible. Andrew Jackson they say was the worst of all, that he was treated worse than any other president. I said, ‘Do that study again because I think there’s nobody close to Trump.’ I even got shot! And who the hell knows where that came from, right?”
Aleem paused to reflect on Trump’s remarks, concluding, “This is … impossible to follow.” He noted that Trump’s off-the-cuff remarks often jump from one topic to another without any clear connection, making it difficult for even seasoned political observers to make sense of his points.
Aleem also criticized Trump’s tendency to intertwine personal grievances, conspiracy theories, and policy discussions. In the Potterville speech, Trump leaped from discussing San Francisco to the historical treatment of past presidents to a vague comment about being shot, all within a short span of time. Aleem questioned the logic behind these statements, writing, “What does he even mean about how horribly presidents were treated? To cap it all off, Trump casually tossed out an insidious conspiracy theory.”
According to Aleem, Trump’s communication struggles have been somewhat masked by his rivalry with President Joe Biden, whose age and mental sharpness have also been questioned. But now, facing younger opponents like Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s mental acuity is becoming harder to ignore. “Questions about Biden’s mental acuity were rightly raised in this election cycle. Questions about Trump’s mental acuity should be raised, too,” Aleem asserted.
He concluded by warning that Trump’s lack of focus could pose significant risks if he were to win a second term, especially in handling critical issues such as national security or another public health crisis. “Trump’s seeming decline isn’t his worst quality — but it likely would make many of his vices worse.”
