Mental Health Experts State Donald Trump Is Not a 'Mentally Well Man' Following Uncensored Interview

Forensic psychiatrist Bandy Lee has described Donald Trump as 'not a mentally well man' after analysing his lengthy TIME interview, while the assessment was based on publicly available information rather than a personal clinical examination.

Questions about Donald Trump's mental health have drawn fresh attention after forensic psychiatrist Bandy Lee and psychologist Vincent Greenwood analysed his lengthy interview with TIME senior political correspondent Eric Cortellessa and TIME editor-in-chief Sam Jacobs.

Trump sat for the interview at the White House on 28 September, with TIME publishing the conversation on 1 October. The wide-ranging discussion covered Iran, artificial intelligence, the Federal Reserve, the Supreme Court and the upcoming midterm elections.

Lee and Greenwood offered critical assessments of Trump's behaviour during the interview.

Donald Trump Mental Health Questions Follow TIME Interview

For context, the 75-minute interview gave TIME journalists an extended opportunity to question Trump about foreign policy, domestic politics and his administration.

When questioned about his earlier comments that the conflict with Iran could be resolved within four to five weeks, Trump disputed that he had made such a promise and criticised media coverage of his remarks.

His comments about Iran also featured prominently in the experts' analysis.

Asked how he could describe himself as a president of peace while threatening Iran with annihilation, Trump said, 'By annihilating Iran, we've created peace in the world', according to the TIME interview.

The interviewers also asked Trump whether he would consider deploying Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to polling places during the midterm elections.

When asked whether he would rule out declaring a state of emergency before the elections, Trump said he did not rule anything 'out or in' and said he could use the Insurrection Act.

Those remarks became part of Greenwood's assessment of the president's behaviour.

What Did Mental Health Experts Say About Donald Trump?

Lee, a forensic and social psychiatrist and editor of The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, told AlterNet that she believed the interview showed the public that Trump was 'not a mentally well man'.

She also described Trump as a 'spellbinder', arguing that some people she considers psychologically dangerous can also be charming and manipulative.

Lee also argued that what she characterised as Trump's cognitive and emotional decline was contributing to what she considered increasingly concerning behaviour. She based her assessment on the president's public conduct and the interview, not a private psychiatric examination.

Greenwood, a psychologist and executive director of the Washington Center for Cognitive Therapy, offered a similarly critical assessment.

He argued that Trump's behaviour reflected what he called a 'trifecta of destructive traits', which he identified as impulsivity, remorselessness and a desire for domination.

Greenwood pointed specifically to Trump's response about the Insurrection Act, which he said illustrated what he considered impulsivity and a lack of a clear limiting principle.

His analysis also focused on Trump's remarks about Iran, including the president's references to 'annihilation'.

Why Donald Trump's Mental Health Claims Remain Unverified

The assessments require caution because neither expert conducted a personal clinical examination of Trump for the purpose of the TIME analysis.

Greenwood argued that the methodology he used does not require a personal interview and instead relies on established behavioural traits and publicly available information.

Lee's description of Trump as 'not a mentally well man' is an opinion expressed by an expert, not a confirmed clinical diagnosis.

The TIME interview itself also showed Trump pushing back against the way he believed journalists were covering his presidency.

Near the end of the conversation, Trump complained that the interviewers had failed to ask enough positive questions about his administration and achievements.

'You haven't asked me one f****** positive question,' Trump said during the interview.

The exchange came near the end of a wide-ranging interview in which Trump challenged the interviewers' characterisation of his presidency and defended his administration's record.