I Know Just How Bad Trump’s Decline Is About to Be: Author
Annabella Rosciglione, The Daily Beast Podcast
Sun, October 11, 2026

Donald Trump's mental state is rapidly declining before the American public, and it's only going to get worse in the coming weeks, author Kurt Andersen explained.
On the most recent episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, Andersen explained to host Joanna Coles how the 80-year-old president is going to become increasingly angry and erratic as his mental health declines.
He said that this will only become more pronounced if the Republican Party suffers significant losses in the 2026 midterm elections, as they are predicted to do.
"He's obviously beyond whatever cognitive decline he had and has and more manifest craziness, I think the kind of elderly kind of as they call it in dementia sundownerism where people who are with dementia late at late in the day like just get angry," Andersen said.
"In his case and in old people's case, like a kind of the sun, the sunset itself is a daily foreshadowing of you're gonna die soon," he added.
He explained that if Republicans do indeed lose control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections then Trump's anger will only become more pronounced.

Trump's mental health will only further decline after GOP losses in the midterm elections, Andersen predicted. / Eric Lee / REUTERS
"He will be more angry, you know, more himself, and God knows what forms that will take in terms of anger and depression," he said.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.
Andersen also noted that Trump is a "guy who has gotten everything he ever wanted, but he still is "so manifestly miserable," which explains how he reacts to political setbacks when they do arise.
As it relates to the forthcoming election, Andersen explained that party divisions may only add to Trump's crazed mental state. He cited scandal-ridden Texas Republican Ken Paxton, who has claimed that Trump is sinking his Senate campaign as one example.
But he also noted that when he is under pressure, as he likely will be after the election, he will just resort to his typical tactics as a protective instinct.
"He'll say it's rigged and he'll do all that stuff that we know and thank goodness, you know, we've had some years to build a legal apparatus to that's prepared for that," he said, adding that still Trump will be blamed for GOP losses.
Insider Reveals Trump’s ‘Foul Mood’ on Shrinking Rally Blitz
Harry Thompson
Mon, October 12, 2026
Donald Trump has been in a "foul mood" during his midterm rally tour, according to a source.
The 80-year-old president has been on a whirlwind road show across the country to muster support for the GOP ahead of the congressional elections on Nov. 3.
But his rallies are drawing smaller crowds than in years past, and a person familiar with his behavior told The Washington Post that he has at times been in a "foul mood."
The appearances come as the elections are shaping up as a referendum on his historically unpopular presidency, with Democrats widely expected to make major gains in both the House and the Senate.
Trump's advisers believe that hitting the campaign trail—despite not being up for election himself—is the most useful thing he can do ahead of the vote, the newspaper reported. That, and lowering gas prices.
Fears remain in the GOP that turnout could be lower among Trump voters because he isn't on the ballot. Party officials told the Post that his visits to friendly territory are the best way to get them to the polling booth.
Trump has leaned into that familiarity, telling an Oklahoma crowd in early October that he was there "to thank them."
Similarly, in one viral clip, he told a Tennessee rally that speaking to them was "easy" as "there's such love in these rooms," adding, "It's amazing when you stand up here. It's just, like, the love… I could say the stupidest things, and you clap."
The same report says there have been mixed emotions, with one adviser telling the newspaper that Trump thinks the campaign is going well and that he has been in high spirits.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.
He has at least outwardly bragged about the success of the events, writing on Truth Social on Sunday evening that "My Rallies, legendary they have already become, have made a tremendous difference with the enthusiasm of the Republican Party.
"They have been waiting for them to happen, even though I never thought I'd have to be doing Rallies again.
"The good news is, I love them, the music, and the incredible enthusiasm, and will always be in favor of what's good for America—and that means the Republican Party."
Still, though, he has shown strong indications that he's insecure about turnout.
After The New York Times reported some had been thin, he hit out.
"The Fake News New York Times 'reported' on my Great, PACKED Rally in Ohio that, 'the place was not full. Some upper sections were almost completely empty,'" he raged on Truth Social.
"There are no empty seats, there haven't been for years, and there never will be. The Rallies are 'HOTTER' than ever," he said. "They are all 'happenings,' and they never happened before, and will never be duplicated again."
However, a Daily Beast and PunchUp analysis last week found that he is appearing in venues that are smaller than in the halcyon days of the MAGA movement. In some cases, rallies in repeat towns and cities have shrunk by as much as 75 percent.
Trump has endured historically low approval ratings during his second term in office, sinking into the low 30s across a slew of polls.
It comes as Americans suffer steep gas prices as a direct consequence of his foreign policy agenda.















