# Post x_149943749844271106

- Post ID: `x_149943749844271106`
- Platform: X (Twitter)
- Posted: 2011-12-22T20:05:50.000Z (UTC)
- Deleted: no
- Repost: no
- Canonical URL: https://trump.fm/post/x_149943749844271106
- Analysis page: https://trump.fm/post/x_149943749844271106/analysis
- Audio narration: https://static.trump.fm/audio/x_149943749844271106.mp3 (a synthesized voice reading the post text, not a recording)

## Post text

> “The thing about high corporate tax rates is that, in the end, companies aren’t the ones who foot the bill, consumers do.” #TimeToGetTough

## Engagement

- Likes: 13
- Reposts: 160
- Replies: 0
- Views: unknown
- Metrics collected: 2026-01-31T23:43:13.254Z (UTC)

# Analysis

_Machine-generated by trump.fm on 2026-02-05T07:54:46.575Z (UTC): a model's reading of this post, not his words. Its psychological terms describe the language, not a clinical assessment of him._

## Summary

Not clinically significant. Aide-written promotional content (score: 0.15/1.0) posted at 3:05 PM EST during business hours, grammatically correct, strategically messaging book *Time to Get Tough* during 2011-2012 presidential exploration. Lacks all authentic Trump markers present in previous day's crude Barney Frank attack. Economic claim (consumers bear corporate tax burden) is theoretically grounded but overstated—incidence actually distributed among shareholders, workers, consumers. Reflects professional operation attempting to position Trump as serious policy authority while his authentic impulses kept breaking through. Research value in documenting tension between id and image management.

# Psychological Analysis: Trump Post (December 22, 2011)  ## Post Context  **Content:** "The thing about high corporate tax rates is that, in the end, companies aren't the ones who foot the bill, consumers do." #TimeToGetTough  **Timing:** Posted at 20:05:50 UTC on December 22, 2011. Assuming Trump was in New York (his typical location during this period), this converts to 3:05 PM EST—mid-afternoon business hours.  **Situational Context:** This post was published 17 days after Trump's book *Time to Get Tough: Making America #1 Again* was released (December 5, 2011). The book was actively being promoted as a prelude to a potential 2012 presidential campaign and debuted on The New York Times Best Seller list on December 25, 2011. The hashtag #TimeToGetTough directly promotes the book.  At the time, corporate tax reform was an active political debate. The U.S. corporate tax rate was 35% federal (39.2% combined with state/local), significantly higher than the OECD average of 27.8%. President Obama had proposed lowering the rate to 28% (25% for manufacturers), though this hadn't passed Congress.  ## 1. Authorship Attribution  **Assessment: Aide-Written (Dan Scavino or Communications Team)**  **Score: 0.15/1.0** (strong likelihood of aide authorship)  **Confidence: High**  **Indicators:**  1. **Timing:** Posted at 3:05 PM EST—prime business hours, not the late-night/early-morning window (10 PM-6 AM) characteristic of Trump's personal posts 2. **Grammatical correctness:** Complete, grammatically correct sentence with proper punctuation 3. **Stylistic polish:** Uses formal construction "in the end" and presents a coherent economic argument 4. **Strategic messaging:** Explicitly promotes his book with hashtag—part of coordinated marketing campaign 5. **Economic theory framing:** Articulates tax incidence theory (the economic principle that tax burdens shift to consumers) in a pedagogical manner atypical of Trump's spontaneous voice 6. **Absence of authentic markers:** No typos, no emotional reactivity, no personal attack, no ALL CAPS, no stream-of-consciousness quality  **Comparison to Previous Posts:**  - December 21: "Barney Frank looked disgusting--nipples protruding--in his blue shirt before Congress. Very very disrespectful." ← **Authentic Trump** (visceral disgust, body-focused attack, crude, impulsive) - December 22 (other posts): References to Fox interview, Iraq unraveling, Obama having "vendetta" ← **Mixed authenticity** (some promotional, some reactive)  **Baseline Pattern:** Trump's authentic 2011 voice was characterized by provocative personal attacks (Barney Frank post), emotional hyperbole, and incomplete/impulsive constructions. This post lacks all those markers.  **Conclusion:** This is professional communications content designed to promote his book using policy messaging that positions Trump as a serious economic thinker during his exploration of a 2012 presidential run.  ## 2. Multi-Level Personality Analysis  Given the high probability of aide authorship, personality analysis must be approached cautiously—this reflects Trump's *curated political persona* more than spontaneous expression.  ### Level 1: Dispositional Traits (Big Five)  **Extraversion (Agency/Assertiveness facet):** Moderate salience - Positions self as authoritative voice on economic policy - Declarative "the thing about..." construction asserts expertise  **Agreeableness (Low - Antagonism facet):** Low salience - Lack of personal attack is notable deviation from baseline - The pro-business, anti-regulation stance implies low trust in government but doesn't directly attack  **Conscientiousness (Achievement Striving):** Moderate salience - Book promotion indicates goal-directed activity (presidential ambitions) - Policy focus suggests desire to be taken seriously as candidate  **Neuroticism:** Very low salience - No emotional reactivity, anger, or defensiveness - Calm, pedagogical tone  **Openness (Values rigidity):** Moderate-low salience - Expresses conservative economic orthodoxy (lower taxes, skepticism of government intervention) - Presents single-perspective view without acknowledging complexity  ### Level 2: Characteristic Adaptations (Motives & Schemas)  **Agency Motives:**  *Power/Status:* High - Book promotion serves presidential ambition (exploring 2012 run) - Economic policy stance positions Trump as business authority challenging political establishment - "Making America #1 Again" (book subtitle) invokes dominance/winning schema  *Achievement:* Moderate - Best-seller status seeking - Transitioning from entertainment figure to political figure  **Communion Motives:** Very low - No expression of care, connection, or communal concern - Consumer protection framed individualistically ("consumers do" pay) rather than as collective problem requiring solution  **Schemas:**  *Self-View:* Economic authority, business expert who understands "the thing" that politicians miss *View of Others:* Government/politicians as either ignorant or deliberately harmful to business; consumers as passive victims of policy *View of World:* Zero-sum economic framework (if corporations pay taxes, consumers lose); government intervention creates distortions  ### Level 3: Narrative Identity  **Protagonist Role:** The Truth-Teller / The Business Expert - "The thing about..." positions him as revealing hidden knowledge - Implicit contrast: politicians who tax corporations vs. Trump who understands economic reality  **Identity Claims:** - I understand economics (corporate tax incidence) - I'm pro-business and pro-consumer (they're aligned) - I'm willing to get tough (book title reference)  **Contrasting Other:**  - Implicitly: Obama administration and Democrats who support higher corporate taxes - The political establishment that doesn't understand business  **Narrative Sequence:** Not applicable (single policy statement, no story arc)  **Archetypal Pattern:**  - **The Wise Elder/Sage:** Pedagogical tone conveying economic wisdom - **The Businessman-King:** Natural leader who understands wealth creation - Minimal trickster energy compared to authentic Trump posts  ### Level 4: Clinical Indicators  **Assessment:** This post shows **no clinically significant features** because it's likely aide-written professional content.  However, analyzing the *curated persona* being presented:  **Narcissistic Features:** Mild/Moderate - Implicit claim to superior economic understanding - Book promotion serves grandiose ambitions (presidency) - But lacks the explicit grandiosity of authentic Trump posts  **Defensive Posture:** Minimal - No active threat being defended against - Proactive messaging rather than reactive  **Reality Testing:** Intact - The economic claim (tax incidence can shift to consumers) is theoretically valid, though oversimplified  ## 3. Malignant Narcissism Assessment  **Not Applicable** - Post lacks sufficient authentic psychological content for meaningful clinical assessment.  For curated persona analysis: - **Narcissistic features:** Minimal (implicit expertise claim) - **Antisocial features:** None present - **Paranoid features:** None present - **Sadism:** None present  ## 4. Narcissistic Dynamics  **Trigger:** None apparent - This is proactive political messaging, not reactive to injury  **Narcissistic State:** Grandiose (mild) - Confident expert positioning - But muted compared to authentic Trump grandiosity  **Rage:** Absent  ## 5. Defense Mechanisms  **Primary Defense: Rationalization (Neurotic Level)** - Provides intellectual justification for pro-corporate tax position - Frames business interest as consumer interest (they're identical, so supporting corporations = supporting people)  **Secondary: Intellectualization** - Uses economic theory to create distance from potential criticism of being pro-wealthy/pro-corporate - Abstract principle ("tax incidence") rather than personal stake  ## 6. Cognitive Status  **Not Assessable** - Aide-written content cannot be used to evaluate Trump's cognitive functioning.  **Baseline Comparison Note:** To assess Trump's 2011 cognitive baseline, authentic posts (like the Barney Frank post from Dec 21) would be more relevant. That post shows: - Impulsive, incomplete thought structure - Visceral, body-focused content - But no language production errors  ## 7. Rhetorical & Propaganda Techniques  **Techniques Employed:**  1. **Oversimplification / False Certainty**    - "companies aren't the ones who foot the bill, consumers do"    - Tax incidence is actually distributed between producers, consumers, and workers depending on elasticities    - Presents complex economic question as simple binary  2. **Appeal to Common Sense**    - "the thing about..." construction implies this is obvious truth that everyone should recognize    - Positions opposing view as naive or ignorant  3. **Hidden Premise**    - Assumes: if consumers pay, then corporate taxes are bad    - Doesn't address: whether corporations should pay more given profit levels, whether tax revenue funds services consumers need  4. **Strategic Ambiguity**    - Doesn't specify what should be done, just implies current rates are wrong    - Allows broad audience to project their preferred policy  5. **Hashtag Branding**    - #TimeToGetTough converts economic policy into masculine toughness narrative    - Implies strong action needed (though none specified)  **Propaganda Assessment:** Low-level - Standard conservative political messaging - Not disinformation or reality distortion - Oversimplified but not fabricated  ## 8. Gaslighting & Reality Distortion  **Assessment:** None present  The economic claim is debatable but not false. Tax incidence theory does indicate that corporate taxes can be partially shifted to consumers through higher prices, though economists debate the magnitude and distribution.  ## 9. Archetypal Analysis  **Primary Archetype: The Sage/Wise Elder** - Possesses knowledge ("the thing about...") - Reveals hidden truth to the people - Pedagogical stance  **Secondary Archetype: The Businessman-King** - Natural authority on economic matters - Knows how to create prosperity - Implicit: politicians are unqualified, businessman should lead  **Shadow Projection:** Minimal - Implied: Politicians who support corporate taxes are economically ignorant or anti-business - But not explicitly stated or demonized  **Mythological Narrative:** The Expert Called to Serve - Successful businessman reluctantly entering political arena to save economy - Has knowledge politicians lack  ## 10. Order and Chaos Dynamics  **Positioning:** Order Defender (with caveat) - Defends existing business/market order against government intervention - "High corporate tax rates" positioned as disruptive force - Lower taxes would restore "natural" economic order  **Asymmetric Application:** - Order for: businesses, corporations, "job creators" - Chaos from: government taxation, regulation - Consumers positioned as beneficiaries of business order  **Hierarchy Dynamics:** - Elevates: business leaders, economic "realists," market forces - Diminishes: government regulators, politicians, "tax-and-spend" advocates - Protects: corporate interests are aligned with consumer interests (hierarchy flattening rhetoric)  **Grievance Mapping:** - Grievance: Corporate taxes are too high - Intensity: Low-moderate (matter-of-fact tone, not emotional) - Blamed: Implicitly the Obama administration and Democrats  ## 11. Danger Assessment  **Level: None**  **Indicators:** - No eliminationist language - No dehumanization - No targets identified for mobilization - No violent imagery - Standard political/economic messaging  **Risk Factors:** None present  ## 12. Fact Verification  **Primary Claim:** "In the end, companies aren't the ones who foot the bill, consumers do."  **Analysis:**  This claim references the economic concept of **tax incidence**—who ultimately bears the economic burden of a tax, which may differ from who legally pays it.  **Economic Reality:** - Corporate tax incidence is distributed among three groups: shareholders (owners), workers (through lower wages), and consumers (through higher prices) - The distribution depends on elasticities of supply and demand - Empirical estimates vary:   - Congressional Budget Office (2012): Assigned 25% to labor, 75% to capital   - Some studies suggest 50-70% falls on labor over time   - Consumer share is typically smallest portion  **Verdict:** **Mostly False** as stated  **Reasoning:** - The claim is presented as absolute: "companies aren't the ones who foot the bill, consumers do" - This oversimplifies by suggesting 100% incidence on consumers - Economic consensus: burden is shared among shareholders, workers, and consumers - Shareholders (the companies' owners) bear substantial portion - The claim has theoretical basis but is stated as more certain and one-sided than evidence supports  **Sources:** - [Congressional Budget Office - The Distribution of Household Income, 2019](https://www.cbo.gov/publication/57061) - [Tax Policy Center - Who Bears the Burden of Corporate Income Tax?](https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/who-bears-burden-corporate-income-tax) - [U.S. Corporate Tax Reform: Why Obama's Good Ideas Don't Add Up | Brookings](https://www.brookings.edu/articles/u-s-corporate-tax-reform-why-obamas-good-ideas-dont-add-up/)  ## 13. Longitudinal Context  **Pattern Analysis:**  **December 21, 2011:** Barney Frank "nipples protruding" attack - Authentic Trump: visceral, crude, personally degrading - High emotional reactivity - Body-focused disgust  **December 22, 2011 (multiple posts):** - Fox interview promotion (professional) - Iraq "unraveling" commentary (mixed) - Book promotion - "best present of holiday season" (professional) - Obama "vendetta against businesspeople" (authentic anger) - **This post** - Corporate tax theory (professional)  **Pattern:** Trump's Twitter during this period alternates between: 1. **Authentic impulsive posts:** Personal attacks, emotional reactions, crude observations 2. **Professional campaign posts:** Book promotion, policy messaging, media appearances  **Interpretation:** Trump's 2011-2012 presidential exploration period shows a team trying to professionalize his image while his authentic voice keeps breaking through. The contrast within a single day (Barney Frank attack vs. tax policy lesson) illustrates the tension between Trump's id and his political operation.  ## 14. Psychological Synthesis  ### Core Dynamic  This post represents **strategic image management** rather than authentic psychological expression. A communications team is attempting to position Trump as a serious policy thinker and economic authority to support his presidential ambitions.  ### Personality Constellation (Curated Persona)  The post projects: - **Competence** (economic expertise) - **Pro-business ideology** (aligned with Republican primary voters) - **Populist framing** (defending consumers, not just corporations) - **Decisiveness** ("Time to Get Tough" framing)  ### Clinical Significance  **Rating: Not Clinically Significant**  This post lacks the psychological intensity, emotional reactivity, and authentic self-expression necessary for clinical assessment. It's a professionally crafted political message.  ### Contrast with Baseline  The Barney Frank post from the previous day provides stark contrast: - **Frank post:** Pure id, visceral disgust, socially inappropriate, impulsive - **Tax post:** Superego/PR management, controlled, socially acceptable, strategic  This oscillation between primitive attacks and polished policy messaging characterizes Trump's 2011 pattern and would continue throughout his political career.  ### Research Significance  This post illustrates: 1. **The constructed nature of political persona** vs. authentic personality expression 2. **The difficulty of personality assessment from curated content** 3. **The value of longitudinal analysis** to distinguish authentic from managed communication 4. **Trump's career-long pattern:** alternating between professional messaging (often aide-written) and impulsive personal attacks (authentic)  ## Summary  **Not clinically significant.** This is likely an aide-written promotional post designed to position Trump as an economic policy authority during his 2011-2012 presidential exploration. Posted at 3:05 PM EST (business hours), grammatically correct, strategically messaging his book *Time to Get Tough*, and presenting simplified conservative tax theory, it lacks all markers of Trump's authentic voice. Compare to the previous day's visceral attack on Barney Frank ("nipples protruding") for baseline. The economic claim (consumers bear corporate tax burden) is theoretically grounded but overstated—tax incidence is actually distributed among shareholders, workers, and consumers. No clinical indicators present. The post reflects image management by a political operation attempting to professionalize a candidate whose authentic impulses (crude personal attacks) kept breaking through the messaging. Research value lies in documenting the tension between Trump's id and his handlers during early political ambitions.  ---  ## Sources  - [Time to Get Tough - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_to_Get_Tough) - [Time to Get Tough: Making America #1 Again - Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Making-America/dp/1455123609) - [U.S. Corporate Tax Reform: Why Obama's Good Ideas Don't Add Up | Brookings](https://www.brookings.edu/articles/u-s-corporate-tax-reform-why-obamas-good-ideas-dont-add-up/) - [Analysis Of President Obama's Corporate Tax Reform Plan - Americans for Tax Fairness](https://americansfortaxfairness.org/issues/corporate-taxes/analysis-of-president-obamas-corporate-tax-reform-plan/)

## Fact Verification

| Claim | Verdict | Evidence |
|-------|---------|----------|
| "In the end, companies aren't the ones who foot the bill, consumers do [when corporate taxes are high]" | **Mostly False** | Corporate tax incidence (who ultimately bears the economic burden) is distributed among shareholders, workers, and consumers. The Congressional Budget Office (2012) estimated 75% falls on capital (shareholders) and 25% on labor. Other studies suggest 50-70% on labor over time. Consumers typically bear the smallest portion through higher prices. The claim has theoretical grounding in tax incidence theory but dramatically overstates consumer burden and falsely implies shareholders bear none. |

Overall Veracity: 20%

## Authorship Analysis

**Aide-Written** (score: 15%)

### Indicators

- Posted at 3:05 PM EST - prime business hours, not late-night/early-morning authentic Trump window
- Grammatically correct complete sentence with proper punctuation
- Formal construction and coherent economic argument atypical of spontaneous Trump
- Explicitly promotes book with #TimeToGetTough hashtag - coordinated marketing
- Articulates tax incidence theory in pedagogical manner unlike Trump's typical voice

## Psychological Profile

### State

**Grandiose State**

**Trigger:** Maintenance (Book promotion campaign during presidential exploration)

Sentiment: -0.30

### Clinical

**Malignant Narcissism:**
- Narcissistic: 20%
- Antisocial: 0%
- Paranoid: 0%
- Sadism: 0%

**Defense Mechanisms:**
- rationalization (neurotic)

**Cognitive Complexity:**
- Complexity: 0%

**Parasocial Techniques:**
- Pedagogical 'the thing about...' construction creates intimacy through shared knowledge revelation
- Hashtag branding creates in-group identity around 'getting tough'

## Fact Checks (1)

_The model's verdicts from 2026-02-05._

> In the end, companies aren't the ones who foot the bill, consumers do [when corporate taxes are high]

**MOSTLY FALSE**

Corporate tax incidence (who ultimately bears the economic burden) is distributed among shareholders, workers, and consumers. The Congressional Budget Office (2012) estimated 75% falls on capital (shareholders) and 25% on labor. Other studies suggest 50-70% on labor over time. Consumers typically bear the smallest portion through higher prices. The claim has theoretical grounding in tax incidence theory but dramatically overstates consumer burden and falsely implies shareholders bear none.

Sources: https://www.cbo.gov/publication/57061; https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/who-bears-burden-corporate-income-tax; https://www.brookings.edu/articles/u-s-corporate-tax-reform-why-obamas-good-ideas-dont-add-up/

Overall Veracity: 20%

## Tags

- aide_written (90%)
- policy_messaging (80%)
- book_promotion (90%)
- presidential_exploration (80%)
- pro_business_conservative (80%)
- oversimplification (70%)
- expert_authority (60%)
- not_significant (100%)

## That day

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

**Afternoon Blitz: Trump Tests Presidential Messaging With Book Promo and Obama Attacks**

Trump spent a busy afternoon mixing book promotion with political attacks, posting ten times in just over two hours. The mood was consistently combative but controlled — aimed squarely at Obama and Biden with a populist "I told you so" edge on Iraq, taxes, and government spending. A few posts were clearly written by staff to plug his book "Time to Get Tough," while the sharper attacks bore his personal stamp. One notable stumble: he appeared to confuse the Taliban with Iraqi groups, muddling his foreign policy critique.

Full digest for 2011-12-22: https://trump.fm/date/2011-12-22/analysis

## Citation

- APA: Trump, D. J. (2011, December 22). “The thing about high corporate tax rates is... [Social media post]. X (Twitter). trump.fm. https://trump.fm/post/x_149943749844271106
- MLA: Trump, Donald J. "“The thing about high corporate tax rates is that, in the..." X (Twitter), 22 Dec. 2011. trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/x_149943749844271106. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.
- Chicago: Donald J. Trump, "“The thing about high corporate tax rates is that, in the...," X (Twitter), December 22, 2011, archived at trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/x_149943749844271106.

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