# Post x_831510532318429184

- Post ID: `x_831510532318429184`
- Platform: X (Twitter)
- Posted: 2017-02-14T14:28:54.000Z (UTC)
- Deleted: no
- Repost: no
- Canonical URL: https://trump.fm/post/x_831510532318429184
- Analysis page: https://trump.fm/post/x_831510532318429184/analysis
- Audio narration: https://static.trump.fm/audio/x_831510532318429184.mp3 (a synthesized voice reading the post text, not a recording)

## Post text

> The real story here is why are there so many illegal leaks coming out of Washington? Will these leaks be happening as I deal on N.Korea etc?

## Engagement

- Likes: 111,318
- Reposts: 26,588
- Replies: 0
- Views: unknown
- Metrics collected: 2026-01-31T23:43:13.391Z (UTC)

# Analysis

_Machine-generated by trump.fm on 2026-03-11T09:48:57.040Z (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, written the morning after Michael Flynn's forced resignation as National Security Advisor, demonstrates a classic deflection pattern that would become a defining feature of Trump's presidency. Rather than addressing Flynn's deception of the Vice President or the substance of his undisclosed communications with the Russian ambassador, Trump reframes the entire episode as a leak problem. The phrase "the real story here" is an explicit attempt to override public interpretation — a reframing device deployed at a moment of genuine vulnerability. The pivot to North Korea serves to elevate Trump's self-image as a serious geopolitical actor while simultaneously implying that leakers endanger national security. This post marks an early instance of what would become a sustained campaign against the intelligence community and represents the contamination narrative in embryonic form: initial governing success being undermined by disloyal insiders. The defensive architecture — displacement, rationalization, denial — would intensify as the Russia investigation expanded.

## Psychological Analysis: February 14, 2017

This post is a direct response to the Michael Flynn resignation, which was precipitated by leaked information about Flynn's communications with Russian Ambassador Kislyak. Rather than addressing the substance of Flynn's deception of Vice President Pence, Trump redirects attention to the leaks themselves — a textbook deflection.

### Context & Authorship
Posted at 9:28 AM EST (Trump was at the White House). The timing and relatively composed grammar suggest possible aide involvement, though the rhetorical strategy of attacking leakers rather than addressing substance is quintessentially Trump. The rhetorical question format and the pivot to North Korea (referencing the recent missile test) show strategic thinking about framing.

### Psychological Dynamics
The post reveals a subject under perceived siege. Flynn's forced resignation represented a significant early blow to the administration. Rather than process the loss or acknowledge wrongdoing, the post employs **displacement** (anger redirected from the actual problem to the messengers) and **rationalization** (reframing a personnel scandal as a national security leak problem).

The North Korea reference serves dual purposes: it elevates Trump's self-image as dealing with serious geopolitical matters, and it implies that leakers are endangering national security — casting critics as the real threat.

### Rhetorical Strategy
The phrase "the real story here" is an explicit reframing device — telling the audience what to focus on. This is a consistent Trump pattern: when negative information emerges, attack the source rather than the content.

## Fact Verification

| Claim | Verdict | Evidence |
|-------|---------|----------|
| "Many illegal leaks coming out of Washington" | **Half True** | Leaks about Flynn's calls with Kislyak were real and potentially violated laws regarding classified intercepts. However, characterizing all leaks as 'illegal' is an overstatement — some disclosures may have been lawful whistleblowing. |

Overall Veracity: 50%

## Authorship Analysis

**Uncertain** (score: 55%)

### Indicators

- Business hours posting (9:28 AM EST)
- Relatively clean grammar
- Strategic framing rather than impulsive reaction
- But rhetorical question style and topic selection are characteristically Trump

## Psychological Profile

### State

**Vulnerable State**

**Trigger:** Narcissistic Injury — Exposure (Flynn resignation / intelligence community leaks)

**Rage:** Intensity 50% targeting Washington leakers / intelligence community
- Proportionality: 30%

Sentiment: -0.50

### Clinical

**Malignant Narcissism:**
- Narcissistic: 40%
- Antisocial: 30%
- Paranoid: 50%
- Sadism: 10%

**Defense Mechanisms:**
- displacement (immature)
- rationalization (neurotic)
- denial (pathological)

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

**Parasocial Techniques:**
- Rhetorical questions creating shared outrage
- Implied insider knowledge of serious geopolitical dealings

## Danger Assessment

**NONE**

### Gaslighting

- Reframing the Flynn scandal as a leak problem rather than a conduct problem
- Implying the real wrongdoing is exposure rather than the underlying behavior

## Fact Checks (1)

_The model's verdicts from 2026-03-11._

> Many illegal leaks coming out of Washington

**HALF TRUE**

Leaks about Flynn's calls with Kislyak were real and potentially violated laws regarding classified intercepts. However, characterizing all leaks as 'illegal' is an overstatement — some disclosures may have been lawful whistleblowing.

Sources: Known events: Flynn resignation context

Overall Veracity: 50%

## Tags

- deflection (90%)
- Flynn resignation (100%)
- anti-intelligence-community (80%)
- leak-framing (90%)

## That day

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

**Flynn Fallout Pierces a Valentine's Day of Cabinet Victory Laps**

Trump spent most of Valentine's Day congratulating newly confirmed cabinet members and promoting routine White House events -- a carefully curated display of normalcy. But the calm broke mid-morning when he posted a defensive deflection about intelligence leaks, clearly rattled by the previous night's forced resignation of National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. Rather than address what Flynn did, he reframed the crisis as a leak problem and invoked North Korea to signal his own seriousness. He quickly returned to safe, staff-drafted messaging for the rest of the afternoon.

Full digest for 2017-02-14: https://trump.fm/date/2017-02-14/analysis

## Citation

- APA: Trump, D. J. (2017, February 14). The real story here is why are there so many... [Social media post]. X (Twitter). trump.fm. https://trump.fm/post/x_831510532318429184
- MLA: Trump, Donald J. "The real story here is why are there so many illegal leaks..." X (Twitter), 14 Feb. 2017. trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/x_831510532318429184. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.
- Chicago: Donald J. Trump, "The real story here is why are there so many illegal leaks...," X (Twitter), February 14, 2017, archived at trump.fm, https://trump.fm/post/x_831510532318429184.

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