What Is TDS and How Can It Be Turned Off?

There are many Americans – millions of people – who hate President Donald Trump for whatever reason. Some of those people have Trump derangement syndrome (TDS). In an article dated September 5, 2024, Psychology Today describes it as follows: 

Trump derangement syndrome is a derogatory term used to describe a form of toxic criticism and negative reaction to former President Trump’s statements and political actions. The origin of the term can be traced to the late political columnist and commentator Charles Krauthammer, a psychiatrist, who first coined the phrase “Bush derangement syndrome” in 2003.

Krauthammer, himself a harsh critic of Trump, later defined Trump derangement syndrome as a Trump-induced “general hysteria” that produced an “inability to distinguish between legitimate policy differences and signs of psychic pathology” in the president’s behavior. Journalist Fareed Zakaria, moreover, defined TDS as “hatred of President Trump so intense that it impairs people’s judgement.”

Signs of TDS can be observed along a continuum of reactions, ranging from verbal expressions of intense hostility toward President Trump to overt acts of aggression and even violence against anyone supporting or anything symbolizing him. The recent assassination attempt on Trump’s life provides compelling evidence of the volatility and potential dangers of TDS if left unchecked.

I know numerous people who hate Trump and swear that they will never vote for him. Some of those same people hate him so much that they see no good in him. Although I see many faults in him, I also see good characteristics: He is a leader, one who leads from the front rather than the rear like Barack Obama. He is generous with his wealth and gives away all that he earns as President of the United States ($400,000 per year). He loves America and is not ashamed to show it. He has a strong spine and is willing to stand between the enemy – foreign or domestic – and the American people. Most people can see that he works hard – unlike Joe Biden.

In addition, Trump has good policies. The most obvious policy that is good for America is his policy of a closed border. He does not want people to simply walk across the border and claim the benefits that America offers. Along with his closed border policy, he also has a deportation policy – deport all criminals who are in the United States illegally. That includes all people who entered the USA illegally because they broke US law when they entered the country illegally.

According to an article by Carlos Garcia at Blaze Media, billionaire tech investor and influencer Chamath Palihapitiya believes that “Most of us were LIED TO by the media” and that Trump has been maligned unfairly. It is fair to say that most media personnel on the Left have Trump derangement syndrome. They simply cannot be truthful about him, but Palihapitiya exposes the truth. 

Palihapitiya says he took time to really consider some media allegations against the president. [He] says he has made a 180-degree turn on the negative image he had of President Donald Trump.

The podcaster told CNBC News on Tuesday that he was trying to avoid the ideological tunnel vision that many people find themselves in after being besieged by media bias.

“There’s enough people that I hear that are lazy and reductive, and they’re going to end up where they’re supposed to end up – in a little cul-de-sac of their own making,” said Palihapitiya.

“The reality is that most of us were lied to by the media about President Trump. And if you just go back to the source material, you should take away two things: One, he didn’t say half the things [they say] he said,” he said.

“Two, why did these other people just fabricate what they wanted to say so that they could essentially assassinate his character?” Palihapitiya continued. “I think that that second thing is completely unacceptable in America, and there have still been no repercussions, really.”

Palihapitiya said that Trump called him after the podcast, and they had a lengthy conversation. That conversation cemented Palihapitiya’s belief about Trump.

Time alone will tell us how much influence Palihapitiya’s discovery will have on Trump haters. If he has a lot of influence, maybe the Left’s rhetoric will be turned down a notch or two. On the other hand, Palihapitiya may find himself to be the target of some of hatred shown to Trump.

My advice to everyone is to look for the good in all people. There are relatively few individuals in the world who have no good in them, but sometimes we have to look long and hard to see it in some people.