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Like all of us, Donald Trump’s behavior is shaped by the emotional ghosts of his past, which continue to haunt him outside his awareness, says Psychoanalyst Dr. Jeffrey B. Rubin. As he is thwarted abroad and increasingly challenged at home, he may experience these moments not simply as political setbacks, but as foundational threats to his fragile sense of self that must be neutralized.
This dynamic helps illuminate not only his relentless attacks on critics, but also the grandiosity that increasingly defines his public persona. Trump often speaks as if he alone can fix what is broken, casting himself as the only figure capable of saving what others have failed to protect.
In doing so, he elevates himself while diminishing traditional sources of moral authority, which are treated less as guides than as rivals. At times, his rhetoric takes on a quasi-messianic tone—positioning himself as indispensable in a fallen world.
From a psychological perspective, such grandiosity may function less as confidence than as a defense against vulnerability: a way of warding off the terror of being overwhelmed, diminished, or exposed.
As Rubin notes, this pattern can also be seen in Trump’s public responses to challenge and criticism—marked by attack, dismissal, and the redirection of attention. These reactions are not simply strategic. They may also serve a psychological function: protecting against experiences of failure, exposure, and worthlessness that are difficult to acknowledge or bear.
Dr. Jeffrey B. Rubin practices psychoanalysis and psychoanalytically-oriented psychotherapy in New York City and Westchester. He currently teaches at the Object Relations Institute of New York and the American Institute of Psychoanalysis, and he previously taught at the C. G. Jung Institute of New York. He is considered one of the leading integrators of the Western psychotherapeutic and Eastern meditative traditions. He has developed through insights gained from decades of study, teaching, and helping people flourish. He is the author of eight books and numerous articles.
His pioneering approach to therapy was featured in the New York Times Magazine.
Rubin is a graduate of Princeton University, Columbia University, and Union Institute. He received psychoanalytic training at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City and The Westchester Institute for Training in Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy.
