The article below was originally intended as a response to a post by @quantumroam. However it was evidently too long to appear as a comment( I got carried way). Nevertheless it deals with a subject not often encountered, so I believe it is relevant towards understanding the American psyche of today.

SO HOW DID WE GET HERE?
@quantumroam The article describes well the Donald Trump we know, and even if we didn't know some details, they describe perfectly, not only Trump, but a character type that is only too common in 21st Century America. So, if Trump is the product of contemporary American society, how did we get this way?
Let's look back at some presidents who became legendary symbols of previous centuries:

18th Century- George Washington.,, He may not have cut down the proverbial cherry tree, but all indications are that he was well respected by his contemporaries and, yes, he did refuse the offer to become a monarch and retired quietly to his estate at Mt Vernon. Can anyone imagine Trump refusing such an offer?
19th Century- Abraham Lincoln... It's become fashionable to criticize Lincoln of late. Sure, he did suspend habeas corpus at the height of the Civil War, but one only needs to read his 2nd inaugural address to see this was a man of profound humility and self doubt:

"It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God's assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men's faces, but let us judge not, that we be not judged."
..."With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations."

These are certainly not the words of a narcissist. Donald Trump is probably incapable of comprehending their meaning.

20th Century- Franklin Delano Roosevelt...Roosevelt's contribution is often still debated by strict conservatives who will never forgive him for instituting the federal income tax, an institution that has become abused by congress and his successors ( some would even challenge social security). Nevertheless, FDR was challenged by an evil ideology that was as much instigated by allies and internal enemies as the growing menace of fascism. He didn't live long enough to see his vision of a United Nations become an instrument of cooperation between the great powers and the nations emerging from colonial rule. After his death much of his vision was distorted and discarded by the Dulles brothers and their CIA henchmen in conjunction with UK and other colonial aspirations. However, those who have seen Norman Rockwell's famous illustration of the "four freedoms" may well remember that this patrician president was a much maligned visionary.

Has Donald J Trump indicated any vision beyond the aggrandizement of his own family fortune?

So what Happened?

Trump's predecessors in the 21st Century give no indication that Trump is in any way was an anomaly except for his gross narcissism. In fact, the office of the POTUS hasn't been genuinely independent from DEEP STATE influences since JFK paid the price for exerting autonomy. I tend to believe we need to go back to the post WWII 20th Century and investigate social media because the cause precludes the internet.

Early television comedy was in many ways dominated by Jewish humor. There was classic Burns& Allen, Jack Benny, and the Goldbergs, all of which I am old enough to remember. These were rather nuanced shows with some great screen writing.
But then there was Milton Beryl, Red Skelton and Sid Ceasar (enter slapsick and lots of canned laughter). This sort of schtick became popular and evolved into a more agressively antsocial skit. The canned laughter was not an accident; it was training us when to laugh. Every kid wanted to be “cool”, so when everyone seems to be laughing instinct tells us it should be funny. It was an exercise in mind manipulation that even Hollywood couldn’t duplicate. This sort of schtick became popular and evolved into a more agressively antsocial skit. More recently, we saw this illustrated by comedian , Sasha Baron Cohen, whose humor freqquently focuses on some innocent, albeit often prejudiced patsy, holding them up to audience ridicule while pretending to be like-minded. The audience is made to feel in on the joke, but, despite his efforts to manipulate reaction, Baron Cohen comes off as a “typical” Jewish weisenheimer.

What makes this relevant to today’s popular culture is that outrageous has become the norm. And noone can be as outrageous as Donald Trump. At times his outbursts might seem refreshing, especially in the light of some very pretentious opposition. Yet, he is a product of his time in a high stakes world. The subtleties of George and Gracey or even Seinfeld have been supplanted by an “in your face’ culture of pure schtick which he aptly reflects as POTUS. He is both puppet and puppeteer who loves to entertain. Nevertheless, he knows he has to follow a script in order to receive his reward..
Oy gavalt!