The President May Be A Moron

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson didn't deny an NBC News report this week that he characterized President Donald Trump as a moron. Actually, follow up reports clarified that Tillerson may have actually referred to Trump as a "fucking moron" but either way the sentiment is pretty clear. Tillerson is now on a death watch as the top US diplomat and many question whether he can or should survive in the post. If Tillerson were to go now he would join a number of original Trump cabinet members that lost the President's confidence and would have served approximately 24 Scaramuccis (one Scaramucci being an 11 day standard unit of measurement for longevity of Trump appointees).

Whether or not Tillerson called Trump a moron will likely never be confirmed by the Secretary himself but NBC stands by it's reporting that the remark took place. It's also possible that Tillerson misclassified the President if he was truly evaluating him based on the Stanford–Binet Intelligence Scale where the term moron, now deprecated, was used to classify low mental acuity along with two other closely associated terms:

• Morons - Those with IQs between 51 and 70 (adequate learning skills to complete menial tasks and to communicate)
• Imbeciles - Those with IQs between 26 and 50 (unable to progress past a mental age of approximately six)
• Idiots - those with IQs between 0 and 25 (poor motor skills, extremely limited communication, and little response to stimulus)

Clearly, Trump is not an idiot, after all, he successfully navigates the golf course and plays tennis which indicates non impaired motor skills. He does, however, use a cart which forces the Secret Service to do same. That crutch has cost the taxpayers $137,000 so far this year.

Whether Trump has passed the mental age of six is debatable after his Access Hollywood remarks. The tape of that fiasco received an encore showing this week by a women's advocacy group on the National Mall.  Trump has completed a primary education track beyond that of a six year old so that  leaves Tillerson's assessment of moron as the potential correct classification.

In fairness, Tillerson is not a doctor but he is likely a good candidate to evaluate Trump's management and leadership abilities. As CEO of Exxon, Tillerson successfully ran one of the largest companies in the world. Trump has run his own companies into bankruptcy six times.

Tillerson's opinion not withstanding, the President's own words can be measured by anyone against a simple test: Would a moron say this:

"This is an island surrounded by water. Big water. Ocean water.",  Trump speaking about hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico, Sep 29, 2017.

"[he] sold his company for a tremendous amount of money. And he went out and bought a big yacht, and he had a very interesting life. I won't go on any more than that because you're Boy Scouts, so I'm not going to tell you what he did." Trump speaking at the Boy Scout Jamboree, July 24, 2017.

"We should also just cancel the elections and just give it to Trump." Trump, speaking at a rally in the Toledo Ohio, October 27, 2016

"40 Wall Street, in fact, was the second tallest building in business district Manhattan. And now it is the tallest." Donald Trump, bragging about his building following the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in an interview with WWOR/UPN 9 News in New York (Sept. 11, 2001).

"Just heard Foreign Minister of North Korea speak at U.N. If he echoes thoughts of Little Rocket Man, they won't be around much longer!" Twitter, Sep 23, 2017.

"Just remember, the birther movement was started by Hillary Clinton in 2008. She was all in!" Twitter, Sep 22, 2015.

"If you look at his wife, she was standing there, she had nothing to say, she probably — maybe she wasn't allowed to have anything to say, you tell me." Trump speaking with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos about the Gold Star parents of Humayun Khan, an Army captain, died in a car bombing in 2004 in Iraq, July 30, 2016.

The list of statements is near endless. They range from baseless to inappropriate at numerous levels. The searchable Twitter archive of Trump tweets can provide numerous additional examples if necessary.

Labeling Trump as moron isn't the point of chasing Tillerson's remarks. Anyone that's said the things that Trump has said and anyone that has demonstrated the lack of depth Trump has demonstrated on issues of race, international relations, and domestic policy is not fit for the job. Trump does not possess the temperament or the intellect to execute the job at a level worthy of the office or the country.

Here is one last quote to consider that came earlier this week when Trump ominously suggested, while standing with military leaders, that this could be "the calm before the storm."

From the mouth of a moron...with keys to a nuclear arsenal.