Harvard experts warned Donald Trump was 'mentally unstable' and 'shouldn't lead'

24 January 2024 , 03:04

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It comes as Trump wins the New Hampshire primary (Image: RSBN)

Medical experts from Harvard previously expressed concerns about Donald Trump's mental stability, questioning his suitability to be President.

This warning had initially emerged during the New Hampshire primary as his behaviour was increasingly unpredictable. Nevertheless, Democrats have continued to query Trump's mental fitness for office especially given a string of verbal gaffes, off-kilter rants and blatant falsehoods. Harvard medical professionals had pointedly claimed in the past that Trump didn't possess the mental capacity for the responsibilities involved in being a president.

A 2017 book, 'The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump ', had recorded the stern warnings delivered by these academicians. This publication featured contributions from 27 psychiatrists, psychologists and other professionals in the mental health field.

Trump claimed that he had run for president against Barack Obama - when in fact it was Hillary Clinton (AFP via Getty Images)

Judith Lewis Herman of Harvard Medical School and Bandy X. Lee from the Yale School were among those who roundly criticised the former president. They were quoted in the prologue of the book: "Anyone as mentally unstable as Mr. Trump simply should not be entrusted with the life-and-death powers of the presidency."

Retired Harvard psychiatry professor, Lance Dodes, said Trump's "sociopathic characteristics are undeniable", adding that they pose a "profound danger" to America's democracy. He warned that these traits could worsen over time.

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Philip Zimbardo, an American psychologist known for running the Stanford prison experiment, described Trump as an "an impulsive, immature, incompetent person who, when in the position of ultimate power, easily slides into the role of the tyrant."

However, not all co-authors agreed with this view. Some suggested that such claims stigmatise the mentally ill. Clinical psychologist Craig Malkin said: "Equating mental illness with incapacity merely stigmatizes the mentally ill." He believes Trump displays "extreme present hedonism".

Democrats are using what is a common line of attack on Joe Biden on Donald Trump instead (Getty Images)

Biden, who has faced similar accusations from the Republicans, commented on Trump's recent verbal blunders. He highlighted a mix-up where Trump confused Nancy Pelosi and Nikki Haley while discussing the January 6 Capitol attack. "By the way, they never report the crowd on Jan. 6. You know Nikki Haley, Nikki Haley, Nikki Haley, you know, they - do you know they destroyed all of the information, all of the evidence, everything, deleted and destroyed all of it. All of it," Trump said.

The video also showed Trump falsely claiming that you need voter ID to buy bread, and saying he ran for president against Barack Obama, which isn't true. Another clip from a rally in New Hampshire shows him ranting about old US forts changing their names. "We won world wars out of forts. Fort Benning, Fort This, Fort That, many forts," he said, upset about the decision.

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

Alex Croft