His disconnection with reality is expected. I would be surprised if he understood or had any empathy to realities he doesn't conceive. The real change was in the GOP allowing and buying in on all of these.

They told themselves they could contain him, they thought he was like them, cultivating an insincere public persona to accumulate power. He had the juice and the ability to perform jedi magic over their constituents. They rationalized the indefensible to win elections.

None of them care about anything except power and leveraging it. Politics ain't bean bag and all of that. It's revealing to anyone actually paying a modicum of attention that isn't blinded by partisan hate.

It's like the inverse of Gil Scott Heron's "The revolution will not be televised"

"The Nuclear Holocaust Will Be Televised"

There's even a trailer from the Reagan era: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBtu0gr6JqM

But it seems the format is going to be in the style of reality TV shows from 10-20 years ago.

There’s even the CNN tape for the occasion.