I can't help but wonder if Trump isn't secretly thinking the follwing:

[DFW]

"Is there NOTHING I can say or do that will get me out of this job? All I wanted to do was win. I didn't want to actually be stuck here for four years!"

Maybe he heard that Bill Clinton once called the White House the crown jewel of the American penitentiary system, and was grasping the concept already.

[C_U_L8R]

1. The flop sweat is flowing.

Great gobs of orange flop sweat.

[nycbos]

2. He already filed his papers for 2020.

I think his ego is to big to have such complex thoughts.

[librechik]

4. that was just so he could have campaign privileges ($$$)

he can continue to raise money.

[mopinko]

14. you mean funnel bribes.

[DFW]

6. Yeah, I saw that, too

That could just as easily have been Bannon poking him with a stick. I think the thrill is going, going. Gone can't be too far behind, at least in Trump's wishful thinking.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. I don't think his narcissism would permit him to think such things.

His attitude seems to be that he ought to rule, not govern, and that his obsession with winning means that he has to conquer all opposition (for example, federal judges and the media).

[DFW]

7. Oh, I'm sure he's torn

But he doesn't seem to be having a lot of fun, and I think that is mostly what he was out for: a bigger audience to applaud him at every appearance.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

9. I'd agree with that. He probably thought the presidency was mostly

an opportunity for more applause and adulation. And it's not happening. Nevertheless, he's already filed for re-election in 2020, but that might be because he wants another campaign, which would get him the audiences he craves. But by that time he will probably be hated by everybody but the most hard-core deplorables (if he hasn't been impeached).

[NightWatcher]

5. I thought he was doing that during the primary.

I'm guessing his id is going to break from the rest of him (if it hasn't already) and destroy any remnant of mental health trump will ever have.

Side note: parents, hug your children.

[underpants]

12. I hate posts that start "I don't mean this as a conspiracy theory..."

But

The stated purpose of Putin meddling in our elections by all the security reviews was to "disrupt the American election and undermine the democratic process"

Yes some of it was probably just wanting to get back at Hillary. He didn't have the hack material yet but he probably thought he would get something eventually. She was the odds on favorite so he at least sought to diminish her Presidency in some way.

I think he pushed Trump to run to foul up that side of the election. Putin had dirt on Trump it appears and Trump owes lots of money to Russian interests. In a huge field, where one entry can mess up all the math, Trump is a monkey wrench. Who did Putin want and think he could derail? Who was the considered front runner mostly due to machinery and cash? Jeb.

Jeb didn't bring his father's old cold warriors with him but he did bring the people those old warriors mentored. Putin had to consider that taking people with that experience out of the equation was a plus. Hillary also would bring experienced people weary of Putin and aware of his past.

Getting rid of the crippling sanctions was his goal so he figured he'd take a shot with anything he could. It ended up that the whole thing COMPLETELY UNEXPECTEDLY fell in his lap.

That's my theory.

[AlexSFCA]

8. it's all about his supporters

The more outrageous things he says, the more they like him. The moment he starts behaving "presidential", he'll start losing his supporters. Deplorables like bannon wanted to destroy the government. Trump is making a joke out of our entire system of governance. Presenting three branches of governement as extremely inefficient and not in the 'interest of people'. He wants to convince them that only he alone can govern by EO, no need for congress or judges - save your taxpayers money.

[Faux pas]

10. IMHO

I think he's there to cause chaos, get impeached, hand it off to pence, go back to his regular life of BS-ing, pay off his debts with the money he makes while being scrotus and live happily ever after knowing that he 'won'. He's a sick enough twist and more than capable of all this and more.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

13. It's certainly within his makeup to step down from the presidency and still claim victory.