The co-author of 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’s bestselling book “The Art of the Deal” said Wednesday that he thinks the president is in the middle of a “significant meltdown."

“I think he’s reacting from a survival place,” Tony Schwartz told Anderson Cooper on CNN’s “AC360.” “He’s in pure defensive mode. I think that he’s being run by the part of his brain that’s reactive and impulsive, not capable of reflection."

“The sense of siege that he feels because his sense of self-worth is so, so vulnerable that the series of things that have happened are overwhelming to him.”

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Schwartz’s remarks follow the Justice Department appointing a special counsel Wednesday to probe Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, including any connections between Trump's campaign and Moscow.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein announced that former FBI Director Robert Mueller had accepted the role.

Trump responded to the news in a statement Wednesday, saying that a federal investigation would find “no collusion” between his 2016 campaign and “any foreign entity.”

“I look forward to this matter concluding quickly,” Trump added. “In the meantime, I will never stop fighting for the people and the issues that matter most to the future of our country.”