There’s no delicate way to say this. Donald Trump is pathological.

And he thinks you’re stupid.

Not mistaken. Not misinformed. Not confused.

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that a man who once said he doesn’t ask God for forgiveness wouldn’t show an ounce of repentance after posting a blasphemous, AI-generated image depicting himself as Jesus Christ.

That would require humility and self-awareness. Better yet, a moral conscience. Instead, Trump did what he always does. He lied. He deflected. And then he doubled down.

After deleting the artificial intelligence post amid backlash, Trump told reporters at the White House that the image wasn’t meant to portray him as Jesus. He said it represented him as a doctor. Or, a Red Cross worker. And only the “fake news” media, he claimed, could interpret it otherwise.

Trump did what he always does. He lied.

Since when do doctors and Red Cross workers wear flowing religious robes and stand bathed in divine light? This wasn’t a misunderstanding or ambiguity. It wasn’t media spin.

And yet Trump said it anyway − with a straight face − because he believes enough people will accept it, as they have his myriad falsehoods before. That’s the real story here. Not just that he lied.

But that he........

© USA TODAY