Since the days of the Republican primaries, professionals of all kinds have been pointing out the obvious mental instability of Donald J. Trump. In the weeks following his improbable election to the highest office in the country, more professionals have commented on his erratic behavior, his pathological lying and his lack of impulse control.
Some psychologists and psychiatrists have said that Trump shows narcissistic personality disorder, or even “malignant narcissism”, a more dangerous version of that mental illness. There have been calls for him to have a mental health evaluation, and even a suggestion that the White House employ a full time psychiatrist.
There’s been pushback against these statements because psychologists and psychiatrists are prohibited from diagnosing people without a formal evaluation. It is a clear violation of ethics rules to make a diagnosis without ever meeting a person. The rule that limits the diagnosis of public figures is called the “Goldwater Rule.”
But mental health professionals are struggling with this particular prohibition in the age of Trump. They know that they have a moral and ethical obligation to speak out if they truly believe that the President is a risk to national security or to world peace. There is another rule, called the “duty to warn,” that works against the “Goldwater Rule.”
The phrase “duty to warn” comes from a legal requirement of all therapists. If they become aware that one of their patients is a threat to someone, they have a duty to warn the potential victim. They are obligated to warn police when a patient presents as a threat to the public.
A psychologist named John Gartner, PhD, formed a group calling itself “Duty To Warn.” When he created the group, he had 300 people sign up on the very first day. He also started a petition urging Senator Schumer (D-NY) to push for the removal of the President under the 25th Amendment. The petition states that these professionals believe that the President is unfit to fulfill his duties. It started with one name, and now has well over 30,000 signatures from licensed mental health professionals.
In an interview with Forbes, Dr. Gartner said that he would have created Donald Trump if:
“….I were to take the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) and try to create a Frankenstein’s monster of the most dangerous and destructive leader and had freedom to create any combination of diagnosis and symptoms.”
The members of Duty To Warn feel that their obligation to the public outweighs the ethical limits placed on them by the Goldwater Rule. These dedicated professionals are willing to risk violating their rules of ethics because they are convinced that the country is being run by a dangerously unstable leader. They are risking their professional reputations, and perhaps their jobs, because they recognize the signs of mental illness that are exhibited in our White House every day.
Those of us who are not mental health professionals can’t sign the petition or join the group. But we can share this information with friends and relatives. And we can add our voices to the call for removal of Donald Trump under the 25th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
After all, don’t we all really have a duty to warn?
Featured image via YouTube screengrab.
