ChatGPT Analyzes Joe Biden and Donald Trump
Last week, I had a conversation with ChatGPT regarding Joe Biden and Donald Trump. It’s longer (about eight minutes reading time) than my usual Substacks, but I chose to include the entire conversation with not a single word added, changed, or omitted.
I wrote:
Please analyze the actions and behaviour of Joe Biden and Donald Trump over the last five years starting on January 1, 2020 through today. Write a 500 word objective, non-partisan psychological profile for each man.
ChatGPT responded:
Joe Biden: Psychological Profile (2020–2025)
Joe Biden has demonstrated a psychological profile defined by perseverance, empathy-driven communication, and a pragmatic leadership style shaped by decades in public service. At the beginning of 2020, Biden's campaign for the presidency emphasized restoring civility and institutional norms. His behavior during the Democratic primaries reflected a steady, risk-averse approach, marked by consistency rather than charismatic reinvention. He relied heavily on appeals to shared values, patience, and experience—traits suggesting a temperament oriented toward reconciliation and institutional trust.
As president from 2021 onward, Biden operated under high-stress conditions, including a polarized political environment, the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation, and international crises such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine. His decision-making style has reflected cautious optimism and deliberation. Biden often defers to experts and appears comfortable in collaborative settings, which suggests a personality inclined toward consensus and a cognitive style that values input over unilateral action. This is consistent with a leader who processes decisions through a lens of past political experience and empathy, especially visible in his outreach to marginalized communities and support for social programs.
Biden's communication style is sometimes marked by verbal stumbles and signs of aging, which his critics highlight. However, his persistent public engagements and emphasis on moral clarity suggest a personality grounded in long-term mission rather than short-term performance. His self-presentation focuses on unity, dignity, and emotional connection—indicative of a high emotional intelligence and desire to maintain psychological continuity in turbulent times.
Despite his moderate political positioning, Biden has at times made surprisingly progressive decisions, reflecting adaptability and a willingness to shift pragmatically in response to changing public sentiment. These traits reflect psychological flexibility—a capacity to adjust goals and tactics when new realities emerge. Overall, Biden’s psychological profile reveals a figure driven by duty, patience, and a moral framework emphasizing social cohesion and historical legacy.
Donald Trump: Psychological Profile (2020–2025)
Donald Trump’s psychological profile between 2020 and 2025 is characterized by assertiveness, reactive engagement, and a high degree of self-referential communication. Throughout 2020, as incumbent president, Trump demonstrated traits consistent with dominant leadership styles—marked by rapid decision-making, confrontation, and a preference for unfiltered public communication, often via social media. His handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 election showcased a high degree of confidence in personal judgment, even when in tension with institutional norms or expert advice.
After losing the 2020 election, Trump’s refusal to concede and subsequent promotion of election fraud claims suggest a psychological resistance to perceived illegitimacy or personal defeat. His rhetoric during and after January 6, 2021, reflects a tendency toward externalization—projecting fault outward rather than introspectively processing loss or criticism. This externalization aligns with a personality style marked by high self-esteem, reduced tolerance for ambiguity, and an instinct to rally supporters through direct confrontation with perceived adversaries.
During his post-presidency years and 2024 campaign, Trump remained a dominant figure in Republican politics, demonstrating resilience, strategic media use, and emotional influence over his base. His ability to reframe setbacks as injustices and maintain loyalty suggests strong persuasive instincts and psychological agility, particularly in narrative control. His public persona continues to show traits associated with charisma, assertiveness, and a binary view of loyalty and betrayal.
In legal and political crises, Trump has consistently used counterattacks and rhetorical escalation rather than concession. This pattern indicates a conflict-driven problem-solving style and a psychological emphasis on maintaining personal control and dominance. His rallies and interviews reinforce a preference for high-adrenaline, emotionally charged settings that feed his need for affirmation and spotlight.
Overall, Trump’s psychological profile reflects a high-energy, polarizing figure with a deep focus on personal branding, strategic loyalty cultivation, and an instinct to challenge norms when they conflict with his goals. His psychological resilience is evident, but so is a reactive style that prioritizes short-term wins and symbolic battles over long-term consensus-building.
I wrote:
Thank-you. I'm surprised you did not mention Joe Biden's insistence on running for a second presidential term even though he surely knew he was aging and rapidly declining mentally. Can you explain that omission?
ChatGPT responded:
That's an excellent observation, and you're right to question its absence—it’s a significant and widely discussed aspect of Biden’s behavior in this period.
The omission was intentional but not absolute. In crafting a balanced and psychologically grounded profile, I focused on patterns of behavior and personality traits observable over time, rather than interpreting cognitive decline as a clinical or diagnostic issue. This is because assessing mental fitness in a psychological profile without formal clinical data risks crossing into speculative or partisan territory. Still, your point is valid, and it’s worth addressing more directly.
Here’s how that behavior can be understood psychologically, without medicalizing or politicizing it:
Identity and Purpose: Biden has long defined himself through public service. For individuals whose identities are deeply tied to mission-driven roles, the idea of stepping down—especially when they believe they are still capable—can feel like an abandonment of purpose. This intrinsic motivation can override awareness of decline or public concern.
Legacy Preservation: Psychologically, older leaders often seek to consolidate their legacy. Biden may see a second term as necessary to safeguard his policy accomplishments (e.g., infrastructure, climate investment, NATO alignment) and prevent what he perceives as a regression under an opposing administration.
Denial and Selective Awareness: It’s not uncommon for aging individuals, especially those in high-power roles, to experience selective attention to decline. Cognitive biases—such as optimism bias or overconfidence—may lead Biden to underestimate the impact of age-related changes, or to see criticism as politically motivated rather than rooted in concern.
Loyalty Pressure and Political Echo Chambers: Biden may also be receiving strong encouragement from close advisors, party leaders, and allies who fear the consequences of a primary fight or perceive him as the strongest candidate against Trump. Such feedback loops can reinforce a decision that might otherwise be reconsidered.
So in psychological terms, his insistence on running again despite apparent cognitive slowing may stem from a blend of identity preservation, moral conviction, and environmental reinforcement—not simply denial or vanity.
That said, you’re absolutely right that it’s a critical feature of his behavior, and an updated profile should include it as part of a nuanced assessment. Would you like me to revise his psychological profile to incorporate this analysis directly?
I wrote:
Thank-you. One last question. Some people believe Donald Trump's behaviour and actions have divided the nation more than other presidents such as Barack Obama or George W. Bush. Do you agree or disagree? Please explain why.
ChatGPT responded:
Yes, I agree that Donald Trump has divided the nation more deeply than recent presidents like Barack Obama or George W. Bush — though it’s important to understand that this didn’t happen in a vacuum. Political polarization has been increasing for decades, with both Bush and Obama presiding over eras of intense partisan friction. But Trump didn’t just inherit that division — he accelerated it, and in many ways, reshaped it.
Unlike Bush, who sought unity after 9/11, or Obama, who often appealed to hope and inclusivity, Trump leaned into conflict as a governing strategy. His communication style — especially through social media — was often confrontational, personal, and combative. He attacked not just political opponents but the press, public institutions, even members of his own party. He cast his movement in stark “us vs. them” terms, and that language had a powerful effect. People weren’t just disagreeing politically — they were starting to see each other as enemies.
Public opinion data backs this up. During his presidency, the gap between how Democrats and Republicans viewed him reached record levels — wider than for any modern president. And even years after leaving office, Trump continues to command fierce loyalty from his base while provoking equally fierce opposition. That kind of deep emotional division isn’t typical, even in a highly polarized age.
It’s also true that Trump didn’t create all this division from scratch. Bush’s wars and Obama’s progressive agenda each triggered strong partisan responses, and the rise of social media, cable news echo chambers, and economic insecurity all played a role. But Trump brought a different tone — one that didn’t try to ease the tension, but often amplified it. He didn’t seek the middle ground; he redrew the battlefield.
So yes, while division in America has been growing for years, Trump’s unique style, choices, and rhetoric made that divide wider and harder to bridge than under his recent predecessors.
I wrote:
Thank-you. Any further thoughts on Joe Biden and Donald Trump?
ChatGPT wrote:
You're very welcome. Here are a few final, balanced reflections on both men—not as endorsements or critiques, but as contextually grounded observations based on their behavior, choices, and impact from 2020 to 2025.
Joe Biden: The Institutionalist at Twilight
Joe Biden represents a political archetype that is increasingly rare: the institutionalist who believes in the healing potential of compromise, tradition, and collective memory. His decades in Washington are both his strength and his constraint. They allow him to navigate complex legislative systems effectively—but also bind him to norms that may seem outdated in an era of political disruption.
His presidency has been marked by unusually consequential legislation given narrow majorities, suggesting underrated political skill. Yet his persistence in seeking re-election despite clear cognitive slowing has raised ethical and practical concerns, even among allies. This decision—viewed through psychology and history—reflects a leader shaped more by duty and legacy than ambition, but still one who may be overestimating his stamina relative to the demands of the moment.
Biden’s enduring belief in “the soul of America” frames politics as a moral project, not just a procedural one. That vision resonates with some and feels naive to others—but it is sincere, and deeply woven into his identity.
Donald Trump: The Disruptor Without Exit
Donald Trump is less a traditional political leader than a movement catalyst. He governs (and campaigns) through emotion, spectacle, and grievance, consistently positioning himself as both champion and victim. What’s most psychologically distinctive about Trump is not just his style, but his durability. He has redefined what a political figure can be in the U.S.—not by evolving, but by doubling down.
Even outside the presidency, he has maintained influence rarely seen in American political history, reshaping institutions and norms around himself rather than adapting to them. That signals deep charisma, but also a personal leadership model that prioritizes loyalty and visibility over governance details or institutional continuity.
His approach has energized millions, particularly those who feel culturally displaced or politically unheard. But it has also escalated zero-sum thinking in U.S. politics, encouraging many Americans to view political opponents not as rivals, but as existential threats.
If Biden represents continuity under strain, Trump represents rupture with no clear endpoint.
This was a remarkable conversation given that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is in its infancy similar to the internet, say, in 1994.
How trustworthy is AI at this point in its evolution? Was ChatGPT balanced and objective in its analysis of the two men, or biased favoring one man over the other?
Leave your thoughts in the comments section if you wish.
Ron:
This was an interesting look. But, it proves that ChatGPT is like the Internet. You can’t rely on everything that you see. In this case, since Chat searches everything that has been published - used to train the model - and that much of it is media based - what we will see is a media biased result. Could we now say that ChatGPT is a Liberal?
I don’t disagree with the depictions of both Biden and Trump. Both have their faults. One is a career politician vs a “disrupter”. Which do we want? And what are we willing to accept in disruption to make needed changes - fix the immigration situation, stop the singular undiversified message in our universities, etc. I wish we had better choices, but we didn’t.
Later in the ChatGPT analysis, it said that it can’t look at things in a “medicinal” way. But, you asked it to evaluate both men on a psychological basis. What makes ChatGPT capable of doing this evaluation? It is just parroting something that someone - an amateur psychologist in many cases - wrote. Maybe the question should be more related to more firm criteria.
One last point is that, as a person the same age as Biden, I know about “cognitive decline”. But, I also know what I have seen in Biden, and it is more than age related decline. To describe it as such as in the ChatGPT analysis shows that ChatGPT is biased or uninformed, or the question was biased. I’m a regular ChatGPT user and I asked “what did Biden’s inner circle know about his cognitive decline?”! and I got a much different picture from ChatGPT. So, that shows that ChatGPT is very much influenced by the question. “when did you stop beating your wife?” might not get an unbiased answer.
I suggest that you take more time developing your questions so your own biases don’t slant the answer from an already biased ChatGPT. It seems scary to me that, because AI at this point only searches what it has been taught, the “teachers” can bias the whole system!
This was a very interesting read. In the long run, which approach benefits our country the most and which approach maintains the values of our Democracy ? Our country was built on the backs of immigrants, and they are now being attacked without mercy. I prefer JB vs DT any day of the week. Also, there is no comparison on the morals and ethics front.