# Post ts_109576452002505915

- Post ID: `ts_109576452002505915`
- Platform: Truth Social
- Posted: 2022-12-25T21:32:47.328Z (UTC)
- Deleted: no
- Repost: no
- Canonical URL: https://trump.fm/post/ts_109576452002505915
- Analysis page: https://trump.fm/post/ts_109576452002505915/analysis
- Audio narration: https://static.trump.fm/audio/ts_109576452002505915.mp3 (a synthesized voice reading the post text, not a recording)

## Post text

> The Vice President did indeed have the power to send Electoral Votes back to State Legislatures for reapproval despite the constant drum from Democrats and RINOS that he “ABSOLUTELY DID NOT.” BUT, they just put CLARIFYING language in the disgraceful “OMINOUS” BILL, making sure that A V.P. DOESN’T DO WHAT THEY ALL SAID COULD NOT BE DONE. So why the new language? Because it was just another political Con Job!

## Engagement

- Likes: 48,598
- Reposts: 13,827
- Replies: 3,857
- Views: unknown
- Metrics collected: 2026-02-01T01:19:51.425Z (UTC)

# Analysis

_Machine-generated by trump.fm on 2026-03-20T01:11:33.143Z (UTC): a model's reading of this post, not his words. Its psychological terms describe the language, not a clinical assessment of him._

## Summary

On Christmas Day 2022—days after the Jan 6 committee's criminal referral and final report—Trump posts a revisionist argument about VP electoral powers. He constructs a superficially logical but fallacious syllogism: because Congress passed the Electoral Count Reform Act clarifying the VP's ministerial role, the VP must have previously possessed the power to reject electors. This is pathological distortion serving ego-protection. The post represents continued DARVO (Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender): Trump, who pressured Pence to reject certified results, positions himself as the victim of a "Con Job." The inability to disengage from this grievance on Christmas, combined with five other high-intensity posts the same day, suggests perseverative fixation on the 2020 election loss. The danger is elevated not through violent imagery but through continued legitimization of extralegal election subversion, reframing democratic safeguards as evidence of conspiracy. This post is part of a longitudinal pattern visible across all Christmas Day posts: catastrophizing about national decline, claims of persecution, and inability to inhabit any psychological space outside grievance—even during a holiday traditionally associated with peace and family. The grandiose narcissistic state predominates, with the subject casting himself as the vindicated truth-teller against a corrupt establishment.

## Psychological Analysis: Christmas Day Electoral Count Act Post (2022-12-25)

### Context
Posted on Christmas Day 2022, days after the Jan 6 committee voted to criminally refer Trump to DOJ and released its final report. The Electoral Count Reform Act, clarifying the VP's ceremonial role in certification, was included in the omnibus spending bill moving through Congress.

### Authorship Attribution
**Authentic Trump (confidence: high).** The argumentative structure, ALL CAPS emphasis, scare quotes for delegitimization ("OMINOUS"), and the characteristic "Con Job!" closer are hallmark Trump. No aide would post Jan 6 revisionism on Christmas Day. Posted ~4:30 PM EST from Mar-a-Lago—afternoon timing, but the inflammatory content and reactive quality override scheduling considerations.

### Core Psychological Dynamics
The post is a **pathological distortion** in service of ego-protection. Trump constructs a false syllogism: if Congress needed to pass a law saying the VP can't reject electors, then the VP must have previously had that power—vindicating his pressure on Pence. This ignores that legislatures routinely codify existing constitutional understanding, especially after it has been tested.

This is **DARVO** in action: the person who attempted to pressure the VP into rejecting certified election results frames himself as the victim of a "Con Job" by the political establishment.

### Longitudinal Note
This is one of six posts on Christmas Day 2022, all exhibiting grievance, catastrophizing, or combativeness. The complete absence of holiday sentiment, family acknowledgment, or goodwill messaging is psychologically notable—the subject appears unable to occupy any psychological space outside the grievance-vindication cycle, even during culturally mandated periods of warmth and rest.

### Danger Assessment
**Elevated.** No violent imagery or stochastic terrorism, but the continued legitimization of VP election-overturning power and framing of democratic safeguards as conspiracy maintains a narrative infrastructure that could support future anti-democratic action.

## Fact Verification

| Claim | Verdict | Evidence |
|-------|---------|----------|
| "The Vice President had the power to send Electoral Votes back to State Legislatures for reapproval" | **False** | Constitutional scholars across the political spectrum, including conservative judges appointed by Trump, consistently ruled the VP's role under the 12th Amendment is purely ceremonial. The Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022 clarified existing understanding rather than creating new restrictions. |
| "They put clarifying language in the bill making sure a VP doesn't do what they said could not be done" | **Mostly True** | The Electoral Count Reform Act (part of the FY2023 omnibus signed Dec 29, 2022) did explicitly clarify the VP's ministerial role. However, this was codification of existing constitutional understanding, not an admission that prior power existed. |

Overall Veracity: 40%

## Authorship Analysis

**Self-Written** (score: 90%)

### Indicators

- ALL CAPS emphasis throughout
- Stream-of-consciousness argumentative style
- Emotional reactivity to Jan 6 committee actions
- Christmas Day posting at ~4:30 PM EST (Mar-a-Lago) - afternoon but consistent with reactive posting
- Characteristic rhetorical structure ending with 'Con Job'

## Psychological Profile

### State

**Grandiose State**

**Trigger:** Narcissistic Injury — Exposure (Jan 6 committee criminal referral and final report)

**Rage:** Intensity 60% targeting Democrats, RINOs, and implicitly Pence
- Proportionality: 40%

Sentiment: -0.60

**Mildly Hypomanic**
- Multiple high-intensity posts on Christmas Day
- Inability to disengage from grievance even during holiday

### Clinical

**Malignant Narcissism:**
- Narcissistic: 70%
- Antisocial: 60%
- Paranoid: 50%
- Sadism: 20%

**Defense Mechanisms:**
- distortion (pathological)
- rationalization (neurotic)
- projection (immature)

**Cognitive Complexity:**
- Complexity: 55%

**Parasocial Techniques:**
- Inviting audience into his logical framework as co-discoverers of the 'truth'
- Creating in-group solidarity against 'Democrats and RINOs'

## Danger Assessment

**ELEVATED**

### Indicators

- Continued legitimization of extralegal means to overturn elections
- Frames democratic safeguards as evidence of conspiracy

### Gaslighting

- Rewriting the Jan 6 narrative to make the pressure on Pence seem legitimate
- DARVO pattern: positions himself as the wronged party when he was the one attempting to subvert certification

## Fact Checks (2)

_The model's verdicts from 2026-03-20._

> The Vice President had the power to send Electoral Votes back to State Legislatures for reapproval

**FALSE**

Constitutional scholars across the political spectrum, including conservative judges appointed by Trump, consistently ruled the VP's role under the 12th Amendment is purely ceremonial. The Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022 clarified existing understanding rather than creating new restrictions.

Sources: Constitutional law consensus; Federal court rulings in 2020 election cases

> They put clarifying language in the bill making sure a VP doesn't do what they said could not be done

**MOSTLY TRUE**

The Electoral Count Reform Act (part of the FY2023 omnibus signed Dec 29, 2022) did explicitly clarify the VP's ministerial role. However, this was codification of existing constitutional understanding, not an admission that prior power existed.

Sources: Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022

Overall Veracity: 40%

## Tags

- jan6_revisionism (90%)
- electoral_grievance (90%)
- vindication_claim (80%)
- christmas_grievance (50%)

## That day

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

**Christmas Day Consumed by Grievance as Criminal Referrals Loom**

Trump spent Christmas Day posting a steady stream of grievances from Mar-a-Lago, never once acknowledging the holiday in a celebratory way. The morning opened with border security attacks and a nostalgic recitation of supposed presidential achievements, then the afternoon brought an escalating burst of posts attacking Democrats, the justice system, and election integrity — all clearly driven by the Jan 6 committee's criminal referrals issued days earlier. The day's most striking moment was a two-word all-caps post — "SAVE AMERICA!" — that condensed hours of grievance into a raw emotional appeal. The inability to step away from political combat even on Christmas stood out as the defining feature of the day.

Full digest for 2022-12-25: https://trump.fm/date/2022-12-25/analysis

## Citation

- APA: Trump, D. J. (2022, December 25). The Vice President did indeed have the power to... [Social media post]. Truth Social. trump.fm. https://trump.fm/post/ts_109576452002505915
- MLA: Trump, Donald J. "The Vice President did indeed have the power to send..." Truth Social, 25 Dec. 2022. trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/ts_109576452002505915. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.
- Chicago: Donald J. Trump, "The Vice President did indeed have the power to send...," Truth Social, December 25, 2022, archived at trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/ts_109576452002505915.

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