# Trump Derangement Syndrome Tds

> Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) is a 2015 political pejorative introduced by writer Esther Goldberg, based on Charles Krauthammer's 2003 'Bush Derangement Syndrome.

Trump Derangement Syndrome, or TDS, is a mock psychiatric diagnosis used as a political pejorative in American discourse since 2015. Adapted from columnist Charles Krauthammer's 2003 coinage of "Bush Derangement Syndrome," the term was first applied to critics of Donald Trump by writer Esther Goldberg in The American Spectator[1]. Originally aimed at establishment Republicans who opposed Trump's candidacy, TDS quickly spread across the political spectrum and became one of the most recognizable political catchphrases of the Trump era, with both supporters and opponents eventually deploying it against each other[8].

## Origin
The concept traces back to December 5, 2003, when psychiatrist and political commentator Charles Krauthammer published a column coining "Bush Derangement Syndrome." Krauthammer defined it as "the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal people in reaction to the policies, the presidency, nay, the very existence of George W. Bush"[4]. He was writing partly as satire, responding to conspiracy theories about President George W. Bush that were circulating among mainstream political figures, including Howard Dean's speculation that Bush had advance warning of the 9/11 attacks[4].

Twelve years later, on August 17, 2015, writer Esther Goldberg published an article in The American Spectator titled "Trump Derangement Syndrome"[1]. Goldberg argued that establishment Republicans like George Will were suffering from an irrational aversion to Trump during the 2016 Republican primary. She mocked Will's pearl-clutching over Trump's "vulgarity" and his suggestion that Trump supporters were more plausible as "Archie Bunker Democrats" than Republicans[1]. The article's target was the Republican establishment, not the political left. Goldberg noted that Will had displayed similar disdain toward Ronald Reagan decades earlier, calling his supporters "kamikaze conservatives" and suggesting the party needed to be "cleansed" of them[1].

- **Platform:** The American Spectator (op-ed)
- **Creator:** Charles Krauthammer (coined precursor "Bush Derangement Syndrome"), Esther Goldberg (first known "Trump Derangement Syndrome" usage)
- **Date:** 2015

## Overview
Trump Derangement Syndrome is a tongue-in-cheek label framed as a fake mental illness. It describes what its users consider an irrational, disproportionate emotional reaction to Donald Trump, his policies, or his presidency[2]. The "diagnosis" borrows the language of clinical psychology, describing "symptoms" like hysteria, loss of proportion, and inability to distinguish policy disagreements from personal pathology[6].

What makes TDS unusual among political memes is its dual deployment. Trump supporters use it to dismiss critics as unhinged and unable to think clearly[5]. But Trump's opponents have flipped the term, applying it to supporters they view as blindly devoted and incapable of acknowledging Trump's flaws[8]. This tug-of-war over the term's meaning is baked into its identity and visible across Urban Dictionary entries, social media threads, and cable news arguments.

## How It Spread
The term picked up speed quickly after Goldberg's article. On October 1, 2015, the Washington Examiner published an op-ed by Stephen Meister that defined TDS as "a hate-induced epidemic sweeping the nation's journalists"[5]. By March 18, 2016, the phrase had entered slang dictionaries when Urban Dictionary user CLWT submitted an entry defining it as "a mental dysfunction causing those detractors with hateful thoughts and feelings about Donald Trump to go unhinged"[5].

After Trump won the 2016 election, TDS usage exploded. On December 27, 2016, Justin Raimondo published a high-profile op-ed in the Los Angeles Times titled "Do you suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome?" that laid out TDS as a staged disease progressing from "loss of proportion" to "constant hysteria" to fantasies of political violence[2]. The piece went viral and drew sharp criticism. On January 8, 2017, Salon published a direct rebuttal arguing that TDS was a "cudgel used to silence his critics" and that the real derangement belonged to voters who elected "a plutocrat authoritarian reality TV star con man"[3].

On April 16, 2017, CNN's Fareed Zakaria delivered a monologue about Trump Derangement Syndrome[5]. The Rebel Media YouTube channel also uploaded a video accusing Daily Show host Trevor Noah of having TDS[5]. The phrase was becoming a go-to weapon in cable news battles.

The term hit peak mainstream visibility on July 19, 2018, when Fox News host Jeanine Pirro appeared on The View and accused Whoopi Goldberg of having Trump Derangement Syndrome. The accusation triggered a shouting match between the two that went viral across social media[5]. Twitter users from both left and right seized on the incident to accuse the opposing side of suffering from TDS[5].

## How to Use
TDS is typically deployed in one of two ways depending on the user's political alignment.

**As a pro-Trump dismissal:** When someone expresses intense criticism of Trump, a supporter might respond with "Sounds like you have TDS" or simply "TDS." The implication is that the criticism is emotionally driven rather than factual. It works as a conversation-ender, reframing the critic as irrational rather than engaging with their argument.

**As an anti-Trump counter:** Opponents flipped the script, using TDS to describe Trump supporters who excuse or defend any action Trump takes, no matter how controversial. In this usage, "TDS" means blind devotion rather than blind hatred.

The format also appears in meme images, usually paired with stock photos of people looking deranged or with fake pharmaceutical ads for "TDS treatment." On Twitter and Reddit, it commonly shows up as a one-word reply or hashtag (#TDS) attached to viral political clips.

## Cultural Impact
TDS crossed from internet slang into mainstream political vocabulary faster than most meme phrases. CNN, Fox News, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post all published segments or op-eds using the term by 2017[2][5]. The View's Goldberg-Pirro confrontation in 2018 put TDS on daytime television and generated days of cable news coverage[5].

The Minnesota legislation in March 2025 marked a new chapter, with elected officials attempting to codify a meme into actual state law[6]. While the bill was widely understood as a political stunt, it drew national media attention and forced the phrase back into headlines[7].

Trump himself and his allies used TDS regularly. Former Trump attorney Alina Habba argued in May 2024 that jurors in Trump's hush money trial should have been sequestered to avoid "coming down with TDS and forgetting all sense of reality"[7]. Trump dismissed accusations from former chief of staff John Kelly in October 2024 as "a story out of pure Trump Derangement Syndrome"[7].

The phrase also influenced how political disagreements played out in personal life. The Doc Emet analysis describes TDS as a driver of "the cutting off of friendships and efforts to shame or cancel dissenters," noting that it "both exemplifies and exacerbates the cultural maladies that drive our deeply divided public discourse"[4].

## Fun Facts
- Krauthammer's original "Bush Derangement Syndrome" column was published about eight months after the start of the Iraq War and was written partly as satire, though by 2025 the TDS adaptation had outgrown any satirical framing[4].
- The American Spectator article that coined TDS was actually defending Trump against Republican critics like George Will, not against Democrats. Goldberg compared Will's distaste for Trump to his earlier dismissal of Ronald Reagan[1].
- Esther Goldberg's article includes an extended riff about George Will imagining Trump "in an Iowa living room, with a macaroon in one hand and cup of hot chocolate balanced on a knee," mocking what she saw as Will's elitist litmus test for acceptable Republican candidates[1].
- Elon Musk described the experience of mentioning Trump at a Los Angeles dinner party as equivalent to people being "shot with a dart in the jugular that contained methamphetamine and rabies"[7].
- Urban Dictionary hosts competing definitions of TDS written from opposing political perspectives, making it one of the few slang terms with completely contradictory primary definitions on the platform[8][9].

## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Trump Derangement Syndrome?
Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) is a mock psychiatric label used to describe what the speaker considers irrational reactions to Donald Trump. Depending on who uses it, TDS can refer to either excessive hatred of Trump or excessive devotion to him[5][8].

### Where did Trump Derangement Syndrome come from?
The concept is adapted from "Bush Derangement Syndrome," coined by Charles Krauthammer in a December 2003 column about critics of George W. Bush[4]. Writer Esther Goldberg applied the "Trump Derangement Syndrome" version in an August 2015 American Spectator article about Republican establishment opposition to Trump's primary campaign[1].

### What does TDS mean?
TDS stands for Trump Derangement Syndrome. It implies that the target has lost the ability to think rationally about anything involving Trump, whether through hatred or devotion[2].

### How do you use TDS?
TDS is most commonly used as a dismissive retort in political arguments, either as "You have TDS" directed at a Trump critic, or flipped against a Trump supporter accused of blind loyalty[8].

### Is TDS still popular?
Yes. As of early 2025, TDS was referenced in Minnesota state legislation attempting to classify it as a mental illness[6], and Elon Musk used the term in a Fox News interview comparing it to rabies[7].

### Who coined "Bush Derangement Syndrome"?
Psychiatrist and political commentator Charles Krauthammer coined the phrase in a December 5, 2003 column, defining it as "the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal people in reaction to the policies, the presidency, nay, the very existence of George W. Bush"[4].

### When did TDS shift from targeting Republicans to targeting Democrats?
The shift happened around the 2016 general election. Goldberg's original 2015 article targeted establishment Republicans like George Will[1]. After Trump won the presidency, the term was increasingly aimed at Democrats and left-leaning media figures[2][3].

### What happened on The View with Whoopi Goldberg and Jeanine Pirro?
On July 19, 2018, Fox News host Jeanine Pirro accused Whoopi Goldberg of having TDS during a View appearance, sparking a shouting match that went viral and reignited debate about the term on social media[5].

### Did Minnesota really try to make TDS an official mental illness?
Five Republican state senators introduced a bill in March 2025 to classify TDS as a recognized mental illness under state law. The bill had no realistic path to passage given Democratic legislative majorities and the governor's opposition[6][7].

### Can TDS be used against Trump supporters?
Yes. Urban Dictionary and social media show widespread use of TDS against Trump supporters, redefining it as blind devotion rather than blind hatred. One popular definition describes it as a condition "conceived as a derisive label by the alt-right" that "has backfired" because "people dislike Trump for actual reasons"[9].

### How did the Salon article respond to TDS?
Salon published a January 2017 article calling TDS a tool to "normalize the danger to American democracy represented by Trump" and arguing that the real derangement belonged to those who elected him, not those who opposed him[3].

### Did Elon Musk talk about TDS?
Musk discussed TDS during a Fox News interview, saying "you don't realize how real this is" and comparing it to rabies. He described a Los Angeles dinner party where mentioning Trump triggered an intense reaction from other guests[7].

## References
1. [You have been warned: "Trump Derangement Syndrome" will be a cudgel used to silence his critics - Salon.com](<https://www.salon.com/2017/01/08/you-have-been-warned-trump-derangement-syndrome-will-be-a-cudgel-used-to-silence-his-critics/>)
2. [Trump Derangement Syndrome | The American Spectator | USA News and Politics](<https://spectator.org/63786_trump-derangement-syndrome/>)
3. [Do you suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome? - Los Angeles Times](<https://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-raimondo-trump-derangement-syndrome-20161226-story.html>)
4. [Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) - Know Your Meme](<https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/trump-derangement-syndrome-tds>)
5. [List of The Daily Show episodes (2025)](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_The_Daily_Show_episodes_%282025%29>)
6. [Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) - Urban Dictionary](<https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Trump%20Derangement%20Syndrome%20%28TDS%29>)
7. [Urban Dictionary: Trump Derangement Syndrome](<https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Trump%20Derangement%20Syndrome>)
8. [Will Trump Derangement Syndrome Be Officially Recognized as a Mental Illness Soon? – PJ Media](<https://pjmedia.com/matt-margolis/2025/03/16/minn-republicans-move-to-officially-recognize-trump-derangement-syndrome-as-a-mental-illness-n4937962>)
9. [Minnesota Republicans launch bid to officially classify ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’ as a mental illness](<https://news.meaww.com/republicans-launch-bid-to-officially-classify-trump-derangement-syndrome-as-a-mental-illness>)
10. [Unmasking Trump Derangement Syndrome: Part 1 - Doc Emet Productions](<https://docemetproductions.com/trump-derangement-syndrome-part-1/>)

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