Donald Trump is 'deeply damaged human being', says Ronald Reagan's son

He called the President a 'sociopathic, malignant narcissist'

Late President Ronald Reagan's son has called President Donald Trump "a deeply damaged human being".

Ron Reagan Jr, a radio host and political commentator, was speaking on MSNBC's "Hardball" programme when he called Mr Trump a "sociopathic, malignant narcissist."

He went as far as comparing the President to a stain on a carpet that the Electoral College has "vomited" up.

"It needs to be removed. And that means impeachment or the 25th Amendment. This man is a danger to the world," Mr Reagan Jr said.

He has routinely questioned Mr Trump's mental health status since the 71-year-old real estate magnate began his bid for the Oval Office.

Mr Reagan Jr also said the President is "pathological".

Another former President, Jimmy Carter, recently said that Mr Trump was in a unique position in terms of media scrutiny.

Mr Carter told The New York Times he felt "the media have been harder on Trump than any other president certainly that I’ve known about," adding that questioning the leader of the free world's mental health "without hesitation" was going too far.

Carl Bernstein, the legendary journalist who uncovered the Watergate scandal and corruption within the Nixon presidency, argued that reporting on Mr Trump’s mental fitness is valid.

“We have many reporters, myself included, who have talked to numerous people, Republicans on Capitol Hill, who in private will tell you they doubt the stability of this president,” he said.

However, those speculating are not trained mental health professionals.

The American Psychiatric Association’s code of ethics states “a psychiatrist may share with the public his or her expertise about psychiatric issues in general. However, it is unethical for a psychiatrist to offer a professional opinion unless he or she has conducted an examination and has been granted proper authorization for such a statement.“

The clause, dating back to 1973, has been dubbed the “Goldwater Rule,” named after the 1964 Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater.

More than 2,000 psychiatrists responded to a magazine’s 1964 survey asking if Mr Goldwater was psychologically fit for the presidency in their estimation and the majority said he was not.

Some professionals, however, are disregarding the “Goldwater Rule” because they feel Mr Trump's position and behaviour make him an exception and that they have a duty to weigh in.

35 psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers - some of them retired - have signed a letter to the editors of the New York Times expressing their concern over Mr Trump’s “profound inability to empathise.”

They wrote people with this trait “distort reality to suit their psychological state, attacking facts and those who convey them.”