“Slurring, Confusion, and Misinformation”: Ex-Federal Prosecutor Voices New Concerns Over Trump Being “Disoriented in a New Way”

Michelle MeyerNov 23, 2023

Minute Read

Over 20 states are debating whether or not criminal defendant Donald Trump is qualified to appear on 2024 ballots due to Section Three of the 14th Amendment. Now, a former federal prosecutor has said that additional concerns, such as those in relation to Trump’s mental state, should be considered.

Slurring, Confusion, and Misinformation

Editorial credit: Consolidated News Photos/Shutterstock.

Attorney James Zirin, the former federal prosecutor in question, wrote a column for Washington Monthly. In it, he discussed Trump’s tendency to slur during speeches and claimed he often seems confused. Moreover, he discussed the former president’s habit of getting facts wrong.

From Bad To Weird To Bizarre

Zirin wrote: “Has Donald Trump gone nuts? This is obviously a difficult question to raise about any person, let alone a candidate, who has demonstrated vicious, paranoid, and violent behavior. Still, all the armchair gerontologists parsing every utterance from President Joe Biden, trying to distinguish his congenital stutter from his natural aging, should look at Trump, whose behavior has gone from bad to weird to bizarre.”

Disoriented in a New Way

Zirin made a clear effort to let readers know he’s not a medical professional before questioning whether Trump might be “suffering from a palpable form of dementia.” He continued: “While neither Trump nor Biden projects John F. Kennedy’s vigor, Trump, 77, has been even more bizarre of late – doddering and disoriented in a new way.”

Mixing Facts Up

Image Credit: Alexander Khitrov/Shutterstock.

The attorney went on to discuss the former president’s tendency to mix facts up: “Referring to Kim Jong-Un, the hereditary dictator who rules North Korea, Trump said he was in charge of a country of 1.4 billion people, obviously confusing the Hermit Kingdom of 26 million with the Middle Kingdom of 1.4 billion. But it’s not just misidentification. It’s the cadence and slurring of speech too.”

Numerous Trump Gaffes

“Trump is having trouble with names. ‘On purpose’ came out as ‘on perfect.’ Adherents of Karl Marx came out as ‘markers,’ not ‘Marxists.’ He warned that Biden is drifting us into World War II,” Zirin continued, highlighting further gaffes on Trump’s part.

A Deranged Danger

Zirin concluded with a reminder that “deranged” people can be “dangerous.” He wrote:

“Deranged people, as we all have learned, can be dangerous. Trump’s policy pronouncements have become more incendiary and more insane, if that were possible.”

A Long List of Gaffes

With Trump’s long list of gaffes publicly on show for everyone to see, one can hardly blame people like Zirin for attempting to bring attention to something that is seemingly being ignored in favor of criticizing his opponent for the exact same behaviors. Others have tried to highlight Trump’s potential mental decline too, with many also pointing out that Biden’s ability to instantly recover from falls is actually incredibly impressive at 80 years old.

The Internet’s Response

News of Zirin’s column was shared across the internet and people rushed to comment sections to give their views on the matter. For the most part, they agreed – but some people felt like the former president’s alleged insanity was being used as an excuse not to hold him accountable for his actions.

Holding Trump Accountable

One social media commenter, implying that all they want is to see Trump incarcerated and held accountable for his actions no matter what, said: “Well, perhaps we’d better lock him up in the criminally insane part of the prison instead.”

Clearly in Control

Others, not as a defense but as an argument for holding him accountable, said the former president’s mental state is fine: “He’s clearly in control of himself. He can follow court orders and knows what he’s doing. He knows the laws. He knows what he did. He knows what goes on around him. Stop treating him like a kid when he’s in trouble and praising him like a mastermind when he does something.”

Absolutely No Doubt

One person said there was no doubt that Trump’s mental state isn’t particularly healthy: “How can there be any doubt? Seriously, if you met somebody like that in your everyday life, you would think they are lunatics.”

Donald Trump’s Diet

Image Credit: Tetiana Shumbasova/Shutterstock.

Some people speculated about the effects of the former president’s diet: “A huge part of Trump’s mental instability is due to his drinking 12 to 15 diet cokes a day. Research what diet coke does to the brain.”

Hurricanes and Straitjackets

Another commenter said: “Considering he wanted to nuke hurricanes and insisted that airports were instrumental in the American Revolutionary War, this hardly counts as news. Trump should have been fitted for a plus size straitjacket long ago.”

Hitler and Mussolini

Image Credit: Frederic Legrand – COMEO/Shutterstock.

Others discussed similarities between Trump and infamous dictators: “Trump is clearly a madman. Resorting to language used by the likes of Hitler and Mussolini is completely ‘off the chain’ and ‘beyond the pale’ of acceptable behavior regardless of politics.”

Time Catches All

One person speculated about the reasons behind Trump’s refusal to attend debates: “This is exactly why he didn’t [attend], or his handlers wouldn’t let him within a mile of, the debates. On stage, it would have been easy to show how bad he really is mentally. Time catches all but if his handlers really are trying to hide this while he is campaigning for the hardest job in the world, they must be found out soon… before this goes any further.”

A Very Sick Man

Words like “insane,” “sick,” and “nuts” came up a lot. “Trump is certainly not sane. He cannot function like other people can. He is clearly a very sick man,” one individual said. “Trump hasn’t gone nuts. He’s been nuts all along!” another wrote.

Slurs, Blunders, Gaffes

“Very sick man” came up more than once in comment sections. Another person said: “He slurs, blunders, and gaffes constantly. Trump is a very sick man and doesn’t belong anywhere near the White House or any office. He should be in prison or in a very secure hospital.”

An Insanity Defense

Editorial credit: Gints Ivuskans/Shutterstock.

Others discussed the possibility of an insanity defense: “Everyone knows Trump is insane but I think he’s playing into it now, hoping he can fall back on it as an insanity defense if he needs to. I think this is something we need to be concerned about.”