Analysis: Is it legal for a sitting President to be "wire tapping" a r...

9y ago Mar 4, 2017 at 11:49 AM

Is it legal for a sitting President to be "wire tapping" a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!

0:00 0:00

AI Analysis

Machine-generated analysis of the post above on 2026-03-11. Not written by the author of the post.

Danger Level

Elevated

Narcissistic State

Vulnerable

Authorship

Self-Written

Intensity

75%

This tweet is the third in an early-morning barrage from Mar-a-Lago representing one of the most consequential reality distortions of the Trump presidency. Triggered by Jeff Sessions' recusal from the Russia investigation — a significant narcissistic injury that legitimized the probe — Trump fabricated an accusation that Obama illegally wiretapped Trump Tower. The claim was later thoroughly debunked by FBI, NSA, and bipartisan congressional investigators. The psychological pattern is textbook DARVO: Deny underlying Russia concerns, Attack Obama as the true criminal, Reverse Victim and Offender. This transforms Trump from investigated subject to persecuted victim. The rhetorical question format ("Is it legal...") strategically implies criminality without making a directly falsifiable statement, while scare quotes around "wire tapping" create interpretive ambiguity providing later deniability. Clinically, paranoid features are prominent — constructing an elaborate surveillance conspiracy directed personally at Trump. The vulnerable narcissistic state dominates, with persecution framing replacing the grandiose mode. The early morning timing and rapid tweet succession suggest a mildly hypomanic, agitated state, likely after consuming media reports (reportedly Breitbart) that were then distorted through narcissistic processing into certainty of persecution. This post is historically significant as it inaugurated a sustained attack on intelligence community legitimacy, established the "deep state" persecution narrative, and demonstrated willingness to fabricate serious accusations against a former president to deflect from investigation. The epistemic closure demand — requiring followers to accept a false reality — represents a significant escalation in reality distortion.

Authorship Analysis

Self-Written

Indicators:

6:49 AM EST early morning Mar-a-Lago timing
Idiosyncratic quotation marks around 'wire tapping' (two words)
ALL CAPS closing 'A NEW LOW!'
Rhetorical question format
Part of rapid tweet barrage — stream of consciousness

Psychological Profile

▶ State

Vulnerable State

Trigger: Narcissistic Injury — Exposure (Jeff Sessions recusal legitimizing Russia investigation)

Rage: Intensity 70% targeting Obama / intelligence community

Proportionality

15%

Sentiment

-0.80

Mildly Hypomanic

Rapid-fire tweet barrage starting before 7 AMGrandiose conspiracy framingImpulsive accusation without evidence gathering

▶ Clinical

Malignant Narcissism:

Narcissistic

70%

Antisocial

50%

Paranoid

80%

Sadism

20%

Defense Mechanisms:

projectiondistortionsplitting

Cognitive Complexity:

Complexity

40%

Cognitive Markers:

tangentiality

Parasocial Techniques:

Rhetorical question inviting audience to share outrageFraming self as persecuted leader to strengthen in-group identification

Danger Assessment

Elevated

Indicators:

Delegitimizes former president with false criminal accusations
Erodes institutional trust in intelligence community and courts
Could incite followers against Obama and investigative apparatus

Gaslighting Detected:

Fabricating surveillance claim and presenting it as established fact
DARVO: reversing who is the wrongdoer in the Russia investigation
Scare quotes around 'wire tapping' create false narrative framework

Reality Distortions:

Obama did not order wiretapping of Trump Tower — claim later debunked by FBI, NSA, and congressional investigators
'Turned down by court earlier' misrepresents FISA court proceedings and implies surveillance occurred despite court rejection

Fact Checks (2)

"Obama ordered wire tapping of Trump Tower before the election"

False

FBI Director Comey, NSA Director Rogers, and bipartisan congressional leaders all confirmed no evidence of Obama ordering surveillance of Trump Tower. DOJ found no evidence supporting the claim.

"Court turned down wiretapping request earlier"

Mostly False

Likely references Breitbart/Heat Street reporting about FISA court proceedings. While FISA applications related to Russia investigation existed, they were not 'wiretapping Trump' as characterized, and the framing that surveillance proceeded despite court rejection is misleading.

Receipts

No contradictions with other posts detected yet.

Psychological Analysis: "Wire Tapping" Tweet (March 4, 2017)

Context & Timing

This is the third in a rapid-fire series of early morning tweets from Mar-a-Lago (6:49 AM EST) alleging Obama-era surveillance of Trump Tower. The trigger is clear: Jeff Sessions' recusal from the Russia investigation the previous day represented a significant narcissistic injury — loss of a loyal protector combined with legitimization of the Russia narrative.

Authorship

Strong authentic indicators: early morning timing, quotation marks used idiosyncratically around "wire tapping" (two words, nonstandard), rhetorical question format typical of Trump's combative style, signature closing "A NEW LOW!" in caps. This is part of a stream-of-consciousness barrage — classic impulsive Trump posting.

Psychological Dynamics

This post escalates the prior tweet's accusation into a legal/constitutional framing. The rhetorical question ("Is it legal...") performs dual functions: it implies criminality by Obama while positioning Trump as victim of unprecedented abuse. "Turned down by court earlier" attempts to add evidentiary weight (likely referencing reporting about FISA court proceedings) while simultaneously implying the surveillance happened anyway — a contradiction suggesting impulsive assembly of half-processed information.

The phrase "A NEW LOW!" is classic splitting — each perceived attack is the worst ever, the most unprecedented, the most unfair. This superlative framing is a stable Trump baseline pattern, not a deviation.

Defense Mechanism Analysis

The entire wiretapping accusation series represents a textbook DARVO sequence: the Russia investigation threatens exposure (Deny the underlying conduct, Attack Obama as the real wrongdoer, Reverse Victim and Offender — Trump becomes the surveilled victim rather than the investigated subject). Projection is prominent: accusations of illegal surveillance redirect attention from the surveillance-worthy conduct being investigated.

Danger Assessment

This post attacks the legitimacy of a former president with fabricated accusations, eroding institutional trust. The framing as illegal conduct by Obama could incite followers, though the post itself stops short of calls to action.

Fact Verification

Claim	Verdict	Evidence
"Obama ordered wire tapping of Trump Tower before the election"	False	FBI Director Comey, NSA Director Rogers, and bipartisan congressional leaders all confirmed no evidence of Obama ordering surveillance of Trump Tower. DOJ found no evidence supporting the claim.
"Court turned down wiretapping request earlier"	Mostly False	Likely references Breitbart/Heat Street reporting about FISA court proceedings. While FISA applications related to Russia investigation existed, they were not 'wiretapping Trump' as characterized, and the framing that surveillance proceeded despite court rejection is misleading.

Overall Veracity: 10%