Politics & Government

Donald Trump Referred to Himself in the 3rd Person in His First Tweet 8 Years Ago

Trump's tendency toward illeism has cropped up again in recent tweets, earning him plenty of scorn - but is it really a sign of narcissism?

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Eight years ago today, back when newly elected President Obama was defending his first 100 days in office, Donald Trump fired off his very first tweet -- the first of more than 30,000 and counting. And that tweet shows his widely lampooned tendency to speak about himself in the third person is not a new habit.

"Be sure to tune in and watch Donald Trump on Late Night with David Letterman as he presents the Top Ten List tonight!" Trump wrote on May 4, 2009.

This habit has cropped up quite a bit lately. Earlier this morning, Trump decried Susan Rice for "refusing to testify ... on allegations of unmasking Trump transition officials."

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On Tuesday, he tweeted: "Trump/Russia story was an excuse used by the Democrats as justification for losing the election. Perhaps Trump just ran a great campaign?"

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling was one of many to ridicule that comment.

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There are plenty of other notable examples over his long and storied history, of course. Who can forget, "Nobody would be tougher on ISIS than Donald Trump." Or when he tweeted "Congratulations Donald" on his own Apprentice ratings.

He's not the first presidential candidate to refer to himself in the third person. Bob Dole famously did so during the 1996 presidential campaign, and was often ridiculed for it. Norm MacDonald portrayed Dole doing so on Saturday Night Live in several sketches.

It's a behavior known as "illeism," or the act of referring to oneself in the third person. And it's tempting for his opponents to use it as proof that he is a narcissist.

However, experts say that illeism is not a sure sign of narcissism. Illeism may simply be a stylistic choice rather than an indication of some deeper problem. A much better indicator of narcissism is how they regard and treat other people in their lives.

Trump's very first tweet is embedded below:

Image via Gage Skidmore

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