The Democratic senator tasked with overseeing the party’s 2018 campaigns says President Trump Donald John TrumpHR McMaster says president's policy to withdraw troops from Afghanistan is 'unwise' Cast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response MORE has shown himself to be “insecure” during his first year in office.

In an interview for The Hill’s Power Politics podcast, Sen. Chris Van Hollen Christopher (Chris) Van HollenMid-Atlantic states sue EPA over Chesapeake Bay pollution Trump payroll-tax deferral for federal workers sparks backlash Senators urge administration to make payroll tax deferral optional for federal workers MORE (D-Md.) said Trump’s need for praise has led to a White House full of "yes men."

“He is clearly something that we saw in the campaign, but it’s just been even more clear as president: Someone who’s totally insecure, someone who always needs to be patted on the back. And when people won’t pat him on the back, he pats himself on the back,” Van Hollen said.

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“He clearly is somebody who needs adulation. He needs his Cabinet members to stand up and tell him how great he is, and that is really dangerous in a president, somebody who just needs adulation from the people around him as opposed to good advice,” Van Hollen said.

Van Hollen, who runs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, pointed to a tweet Trump sent Tuesday, in which he claimed credit for the fact that no commercial aircraft crashed in 2017.

“Since taking office I have been very strict on Commercial Aviation. Good news — it was just reported that there were Zero deaths in 2017, the best and safest year on record!” Trump tweeted.

In fact, there have been no commercial airline crashes in the United States since 2009. Trump, Van Hollen said, has done nothing to bolster commercial aviation safety.

“He couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t help but take credit for something he had nothing to do with,” Van Hollen said.

Power Politics, hosted by The Hill’s Alexis Simendinger, is available on Saturday mornings.

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