# Post ts_108290272061556393

- Post ID: `ts_108290272061556393`
- Platform: Truth Social
- Posted: 2022-05-12T18:00:18.915Z (UTC)
- Deleted: no
- Repost: no
- Canonical URL: https://trump.fm/post/ts_108290272061556393
- Analysis page: https://trump.fm/post/ts_108290272061556393/analysis
- Audio narration: https://static.trump.fm/audio/ts_108290272061556393.mp3 (a synthesized voice reading the post text, not a recording)

## Post text

> Can somebody please explain to The Editorial Board of The Wall Street Journal that a person named Donald J. Trump easily won the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s vote in 2016 against Crooked Hillary Clinton, and in 2020 did MUCH better against Joe Biden, but the Election was Rigged and Stolen. The people of Pennsylvania understand this far better than the RINO “Board,” who have totally lost touch & influence with America. I will soon be Endorsing (so far, 58 to 1) a candidate for Governor!

## Engagement

- Likes: 49,700
- Reposts: 15,612
- Replies: 1,973
- Views: unknown
- Metrics collected: 2026-02-01T01:19:51.442Z (UTC)

# Analysis

_Machine-generated by trump.fm on 2026-03-19T20:11:15.202Z (UTC): a model's reading of this post, not his words. Its psychological terms describe the language, not a clinical assessment of him._

## Summary

This post demonstrates a characteristic narcissistic injury-response cycle triggered by WSJ editorial criticism. Notable features: (1) Pathological denial via continued Big Lie assertion presented as settled fact. (2) Splitting defense—'the people of Pennsylvania' are aligned with Trump while the WSJ board is delegitimized as 'RINO' outsiders who have 'lost touch.' (3) Compulsive supply-seeking: even mid-grievance, Trump inserts his endorsement record (58-1), a dominance display. (4) Gaslighting through manufactured consensus—claiming Pennsylvanians 'understand' the election was stolen normalizes the fabrication as common knowledge. (5) The teased governor endorsement functions as a power move, reminding the audience he controls political futures. Context is significant: Trump's Nebraska endorsee had just lost, making the '58 to 1' claim both a defensive reassertion and possibly misleading. The post exemplifies epistemic closure dynamics—loyalty to Trump's reality is framed as the test of authentic conservatism, with the WSJ (historically a conservative ally) cast out for failing it. The contamination narrative is clear: a legitimate victory (2016) was followed by betrayal (2020 'theft'), with establishment media complicit.

## Psychological Analysis: Truth Social Post (2022-05-12)

### Authorship Attribution
Posted at approximately 2:00 PM ET. Trump was likely at Mar-a-Lago or possibly traveling. While the timing falls within business hours, the emotional reactivity, stream-of-consciousness structure, characteristic capitalization ("MUCH," "RINO"), parenthetical boasting, and personal grievance tone all point strongly to authentic Trump authorship. **Score: 0.8 (likely Trump himself).**

### Trigger Analysis
The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board apparently published criticism related to Trump's Pennsylvania claims or endorsement strategy. This constitutes a **narcissistic injury from a conservative-aligned source**, which is particularly threatening because it comes from within the ideological in-group. The response is disproportionate—a newspaper editorial receives a multi-pronged counterattack combining factual claims, devaluation, populist framing, and a power display.

### Defense Mechanisms
1. **Pathological Denial**: The Big Lie is repeated as axiomatic ("the Election was Rigged and Stolen")
2. **Splitting**: People of PA (good, understanding) vs. WSJ board (bad, out of touch)
3. **Devaluation**: "RINO" label strips the WSJ of conservative legitimacy
4. **Projection**: Accuses the board of losing touch while promoting unfounded claims

### Narrative Identity
Trump casts himself as the **persecuted winner**—someone who demonstrably won but was cheated, and who the people understand even if elites don't. The contamination sequence (2016 victory → 2020 theft) is central. The parenthetical "58 to 1" record and teased endorsement reassert the **kingmaker** identity.

### Reality Distortion & Epistemic Closure
The post demands acceptance of the stolen election narrative as the price of being a real conservative. The WSJ—a historically conservative institution—is expelled from the in-group for failing this loyalty test. This is a textbook epistemic closure mechanism.

### Fact Verification

| Claim | Verdict | Evidence |
|-------|---------|----------|
| "Trump won Pennsylvania in 2016 against Hillary Clinton" | **True** | Trump won PA in 2016 by ~44,000 votes |
| "Trump did MUCH better in 2020 against Biden in Pennsylvania" | **Half True** | Trump received more total votes in 2020 (~3.38M vs ~2.97M in 2016) but lost the state by ~80,000 votes as Biden received even more. 'Better' is misleading in context of a loss. |
| "The 2020 election was Rigged and Stolen" | **False** | No credible evidence of fraud sufficient to change outcome. Over 60 court cases rejected. Multiple audits confirmed results. |
| "Endorsement record of 58 to 1" | **Unverifiable** | Difficult to verify exact record at this date; Trump's Nebraska endorsee Herbster had just lost, which may or may not be counted in this figure. |

Overall Veracity: 50%

## Authorship Analysis

**Self-Written** (score: 80%)

### Indicators

- Stream-of-consciousness style
- Emotional reactivity toward WSJ
- Parenthetical boast (58 to 1)
- Characteristic capitalization patterns
- 2:00 PM ET is business hours but tone is authentic

## Psychological Profile

### State

**Grandiose State**

**Trigger:** Narcissistic Injury — Criticism (Wall Street Journal Editorial Board)

**Rage:** Intensity 50% targeting WSJ Editorial Board
- Proportionality: 30%

Sentiment: -0.50

### Clinical

**Malignant Narcissism:**
- Narcissistic: 80%
- Antisocial: 40%
- Paranoid: 50%
- Sadism: 20%

**Defense Mechanisms:**
- projection (immature)
- denial (pathological)
- devaluation (immature)
- splitting (immature)

**Cognitive Complexity:**
- Complexity: 50%

Cognitive Markers:
- tangentiality

**Parasocial Techniques:**
- Claiming to speak for 'the people' against elites
- Inviting audience to share his contempt for WSJ

## Danger Assessment

**NONE**

### Gaslighting

- Asserts 2020 election was 'Rigged and Stolen' as settled fact
- Claims 'people of Pennsylvania understand' this fabrication, normalizing it as consensus

## Fact Checks (4)

_The model's verdicts from 2026-03-19._

> Trump won Pennsylvania in 2016 against Hillary Clinton

**TRUE**

Trump won PA in 2016 by ~44,000 votes

> Trump did MUCH better in 2020 against Biden in Pennsylvania

**HALF TRUE**

Trump received more total votes in 2020 (~3.38M vs ~2.97M in 2016) but lost the state by ~80,000 votes as Biden received even more. 'Better' is misleading in context of a loss.

> The 2020 election was Rigged and Stolen

**FALSE**

No credible evidence of fraud sufficient to change outcome. Over 60 court cases rejected. Multiple audits confirmed results.

> Endorsement record of 58 to 1

**UNVERIFIABLE**

Difficult to verify exact record at this date; Trump's Nebraska endorsee Herbster had just lost, which may or may not be counted in this figure.

Overall Veracity: 50%

## Tags

- big-lie (90%)
- media-attack (70%)
- endorsement-power (60%)
- rino-labeling (60%)
- pennsylvania (50%)

## That day

_From trump.fm's machine-generated digest of the day, not his words._

**The "Great MAGA King" Embraces Biden's Insult While Hammering Economy and Election Fraud**

Trump spent the day attacking Biden on the economy, comparing him to Herbert Hoover and Jimmy Carter while claiming inflation was at 11 percent. He promoted the debunked "2000 Mules" documentary multiple times, insisting the 2020 election was stolen, and lashed out at the Wall Street Journal editorial board for questioning his influence in Pennsylvania. The mood brightened at midday when he gleefully co-opted Biden's "Great MAGA King" label as a badge of honor. Overall, a fairly typical day of grievance-driven messaging with no major escalation.

Full digest for 2022-05-12: https://trump.fm/date/2022-05-12/analysis

## Citation

- APA: Trump, D. J. (2022, May 12). Can somebody please explain to The Editorial... [Social media post]. Truth Social. trump.fm. https://trump.fm/post/ts_108290272061556393
- MLA: Trump, Donald J. "Can somebody please explain to The Editorial Board of The..." Truth Social, 12 May. 2022. trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/ts_108290272061556393. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.
- Chicago: Donald J. Trump, "Can somebody please explain to The Editorial Board of The...," Truth Social, May 12, 2022, archived at trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/ts_108290272061556393.

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