There is a certain glow Donald Trump has when he looks in the direction of Chuck Schumer… it’s kind of creepy, to be honest.

There is a theory out there that Donald Trump is doing what he has been doing – dealing with the Democrats – because he is hooked on the spotlight. The praise of “actually getting things done” appeals to him because he is an addict.

He is addicted to the praise. He is addicted to the spotlight. The idea of being considered a man who has broken gridlock in Washington D.C. by getting Congress to work is an idea he likes because it gives him a legacy… that’s what the theory inevitably leads to, anyway.

So, Donald Trump is seeking the approval of the Democrats and their allies in the media by actively working with the Democrats in Congress to get things done. That is a plausible theory not just because his ego is the type of ego that would inevitably seek out this kind of spotlight, but because it is the same mentality that has corrupted Republicans before.

There is this idea in Washington D.C. that you have to do something that will make the people feel good, and the only way to do that is to get the Democrat-heavy media to cover it… which is only possible when it is something they approve of.

But, this idea inevitably moves them away from conservatism and toward liberalism. They seek the approval of the masses, access to the good life of Washington D.C., and they want to look good doing it.

IF this is Donald Trump’s goal, then he is not the Great Washington Reformer he has made himself out to be, but just one more politician in a long line of the same. IF this is why he is doing it, then he is being made a fool.

The Democrats, while their party is in shambles, have somehow managed to insert themselves into every major discussion on the table, and likely a part of the discussions that will stem from them in the future. He has given them access they wouldn’t otherwise have. And while Mitch McConnell can claim he actually won on the debt ceiling, the fact is that the Democrats are in a position to claim victory, which is all they need to rally the troops.

They will use him. They will keep demanding more. They will want more access to negotiations. They will want more in the compromises. More of this and that and everything under the sun that is as unconservative as it gets… and he will give it to them, because damn it feels good to get glowing reviews.

And, the media won’t start to love him. They won’t fawn over his willingness to work with Democrats. Instead, they will focus with more intensity on his flaws. They will look harder for anything and everything to discredit him, and he will eventually respond by cutting more deals with the Democrats in order to win affection.

That the Republican Party hasn’t learned that yet is astonishing to me. We’ve watched them play this game for years, and they haven’t picked up on this fact. I’m starting to wonder if they are really trying to get approval, or are just secretly masochists who crave the pain.

Granted, all this assumes that this theory holds up. But… Donald Trump is a lifelong Democrat.

It is just as likely, if not more likely, that Trump is just returning to his ideological roots now that he has the power and the prestige that he has always wanted. That would sting his base even more, because they will have been the victims of the ultimate lie: The very man, the longshot president, who was supposed to win the day for them has done more in eight months to destroy their cause than GOP Establishment has in the last eight years.

And, while I want nothing more than to laugh at the poor, miserable people who assured me that Trump was THE GUY, who said I was a liberal for doubting him… I can’t bring myself to do it anymore. It’s not funny. Because a lot of what they wanted, I wanted to. But at some point, what they turned into was a rabble begging for Washington to burn. It was a chance to elect Chaos itself to the White House, and the one thing they didn’t seem to understand was that Chaos can’t be controlled.

They’re learning that now, and whatever Trump’s motivations for making deals with the Democrats, it’s not what they signed up for.

If Trump wants to be like every other Republican and cut deals to be accepted, that’s cool. Let him. It is more proof that he is not the great second coming of Ronald Reagan, but another politician who just wanted the prestige more than the job. Sucks to be his followers when that finally gets revealed to them. They invested a whole lot in him.