‘Inherently destructive’: A Republican lawyer attacks Trump’s alleged narcissism

George Conway’s warning about Donald Trump’s “malignant narcissism” highlights a known but underrated danger in the president-elect’s emerging revenge agenda—the possibility that his destructive impulses will affect not only his perceived enemies but his own supporters and, ultimately, himself.

“Deep down, he’s a destructive force. Deep down, he wants to destroy,” Conway told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Thursday, characterizing Trump’s recent Cabinet nominations as choices you’d make “if you were actively trying to do harm to the country.”

Conway’s assessment arrives as Trump’s transition team crafts what appears to be a sweeping plan of retribution. The president-elect has made over 100 threats to investigate, prosecute, or punish his perceived enemies during the campaign. His nomination of Matt Gaetz for Attorney General—a MAGA hardliner with his own legal troubles, who previously called for criminal investigations of Trump critics—suggests these weren’t empty threats.

Attorney Mark Zaid, who represents several individuals targeted by Trump, emphasized to NPR that it “would be naive and foolish for anyone not to take this seriously.” He noted that some clients may leave the country as the inauguration approaches.

While Conway correctly identifies Trump’s destructive tendencies, he misses a crucial endpoint about narcissistic behavior patterns: They usually end in some form of self-sabotage. Trump and his administration’s revenge tour is likely to throw a stick in its own wheel in their hurry to slough off what remains of their humanity.

Despite increased support from Asian American voters in 2024, two sources told NBC News that Trump’s incoming administration plans to prioritize the deportation of undocumented Chinese nationals of “military age.” This policy instantly (and immediately) targets a population that has grown dramatically, from 27,000 border crossings in 2022 to over 78,000 in 2024. (This is one of the underreported points about border crossings into America—it is not only people from Latin American countries. They are from all over the globe.) The move threatens to alienate a voting bloc that helped secure his victory.

Trump’s broader immigration plans may prove even more self-destructive. His team is foolishly considering shuttering two Biden administration programs that created legal pathways for over 1.3 million immigrants—a massive undertaking that likely faces significant legal challenges. It would probably drain the political capital needed for other priorities and subvert other Project 2025 efforts. However, because immigration control was central to his campaign, it would be difficult to renege on his promises, especially if he could not reign in people’s economic fears.

The pattern extends beyond immigration. Trump’s threats to weaponize the Justice Department against opponents might energize his base. Former federal prosecutor Mary McCord suggests, however, that such efforts could face resistance from career officials unwilling to pursue baseless prosecutions—which is why Trump desperately desires to bleed them out.

This self-defeating cycle typifies a narcissistic pattern—the Freudian death drive to punish perceived enemies often leads to self-inflicted wounds. Trump’s first term ended in impeachments and criminal indictments, yet his revenge agenda suggests he will continue his quest to haul himself (and America) 100 miles per hour into a wall.

In addition to all of the preceding (and so much more), Trump’s transition team’s plans hint at the systematic dismantling of, y’know, just the democratic norms and institutions we love through politically motivated prosecutions, mass deportations, and the full upending of an already-lessening nationwide consciousness around education.

Conway’s warning about Trump’s narcissism isn’t just about individual psychology—it’s about the potential for institutional damage (or remaking, depending on your ideological stance) on an unprecedented scale. The risk isn’t merely that Trump might destroy himself politically but that he could inflict lasting damage on American democracy in the process. These next four years will reveal whether American institutions and the people within them will survive an existential stress test.