When Rob Ford became mayor of Toronto and then predictably exploded into controversy and incompetence,  it was an anomaly. Equal parts sad and funny, but a relatively inconsequential anomaly. Then he ran again, and was doing well in the race when he pulled out due to illness. It left a queasy feeling in your gut to realize that so many people would vote Ford again after his disastrous first term. 

Now we look ahead to president Donald Trump. It turns out that electing wildly unsuitable rich populists isn't an anomaly, and this time it's anything but inconsequential. Mr. Trump is a raging, textbook narcissist. He really believes he is incredibly intelligent and well informed. When he forms an opinion, he knows in his bones that it's brilliant. So this man, his self-confidence completely unmoored from reality, oblivious to how little he knows and profoundly incurious, will be given the nuclear codes and take control of the world's most powerful nation. What were his supporters thinking?