Unmooring from the truth is a foundational tactic of totalitarian regimes.

New reporting from The Post and the New York Times tells us that Trump has made a habit of suggesting privately that the “Access Hollywood” tape of his vulgar comments about women was faked.

In the words of the Princeton philosopher Harry Frankfurt, Trump is not a liar but a “bullsh---er” — a person who acts not to obscure the truth but rather speaks without regard for the distinction between truth and falsehood. The liar must operate with respect for the truth in order to reject it.

A person such as Trump goes through the world glibly rejecting the existence of knowable facts. He knows (or should know) that the “Access Hollywood” tape is real; he was there, after all. It’s just that the reality of the tape is irrelevant. Truth is beside the point.

- Quinta Jurecic