Longtime readers may recall that I have devoted any number of posts to the question of Donald Trump’s peculiar relationship—or, rather, lack of relationship—to the truth.  The general question I’ve posed is whether Trump actually believes the torrent of falsehoods he emits, or whether he is just a chronic liar. The short answer is that it is some of both.  Trump never has qualms about telling outright lies—i.e., falsehoods that he surely knows to be false. But there are also occasions when he seems truly to believe his own falsehoods—he has an exceptional capacity for self-delusion, for believing what he wants to believe regardless of its truth value.  In either case, it seems clear that truth is simply not an issue for Trump.  He doesn’t particularly think about whether something he wants to say is true or false; if it serves his interests, or if he likes the way it sounds, he will say it.  Maybe he actually believes it, maybe not; he just doesn’t care about the facts of the matter.

The question of mendacity or delusion arises again in connection with “Stop the Steal!”– the Trumpist effort to overturn the 2020 election.  Could Trump really believe, in the absence of any credible evidence, that he was the legitimate winner?  Having now read two books on the relevant events—Rucker and Leonnig’s I Alone Can Fix it and Wolff’s Landslide, I find it hard to avoid the conclusion that Trump truly does believe that a glorious election victory was denied him by means foul and unfair. The authors’ accounts, based on interviews with scores of White House and campaign insiders and Trump advisers, among others, show Trump repeatedly, constantly telling his confidantes that he won the election, even by a landslide.  Never does he admit to any serious doubt about that, even in private.  Never does he say to anyone, in effect, “I know this is bullshit, but this is the line I’m going to stick to.”

So, would it be more accurate to regard the myth of the stolen election as a Grand Delusion, rather than a Big Lie? We know from the polls that a majority of Republican voters truly believe the myth—they are clearly deluded.  But if the originator of the myth also believes it, is it really a lie?

Yes, it is.  The problem with “grand delusion” is that it seems exculpatory.  Trump’s highly developed ability to deceive himself into believing what he wants to believe does not, should not, absolve him of responsibility for his deceptions of others. Anyway, as a practical matter, the difference between a big lie and a grand delusion is inconsequential: in either case, the aim is to undermine confidence in our democratic election processes, to advance the case for anti-democratic “reforms,” and to pave the way for Trump’s triumphant return to the White House.  But as a rallying cry for the defense of democracy, “Grand Delusion” to my mind doesn’t have much punch to it.  Neither does “Grand Deception,” which technically would be the most accurate.  So, I’m not inclined to split verbal hairs: “Big Lie” works for me.