Over the last week, President-elect Donald Trump has taken to Twitter to attack President Barack Obama in increasingly strident terms, and also made a sideswipe at the United Nations for passing a resolution against Israel’s building of settlements in the occupied territories. “The United Nations has such great potential but right now it is just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time,” Trump tweeted on Monday. “So sad!” On Wednesday morning he tweeted, “Doing my best to disregard the many inflammatory President O statements and roadblocks. Thought it was going to be a smooth transition - NOT!”

While these tweets, with their simplemindedness and touchiness, call out for psychological analysis, they also ofter a frightening portent of Trump’s government. As has often been observed, it is hard to know exactly what policies Trump will adopt, since he often changes his mind or offers contradictory promises. Still, he does have defined inclinations and behavioral tics, which are unlikely to change.

First of all, Trump’s tweets and other ad hoc comments make clear that we can dispense with the various theories that he will be a puppet to some behind-the-throne schemer, whether it be Vice President–elect Mike Pence, House Speaker Paul Ryan, chief White House strategist Steve Bannon, Jared Kushner, or Ivanka Trump. The voice in the tweets, which will by necessity be setting presidential policy, is the same old Trump we’ve known for many years. If there were a shrewd puppet master pulling the strings, they might make Trump temper his language or take away his phone for awhile. But Trump is clearly in charge.

Second, although there might not be a puppet master, the attack on the U.N. does show it’s possible for those around Trump to channel his natural inclinations in their preferred direction. His instincts are anti-institutional and unilateralist: He doesn’t trust organizations and wants to go his own way as much as possible. During the primaries, that came through in his jibes against NATO and trade agreements. Even now, Trump’s tweet against the U.N. is mild compared to his many other insults.

What makes Trump’s U.N. tweet interesting is that it fuses his own unilateralist inclinations with the policies of his party. Republicans in the Senate are equally angry at the U.N. and are preparing ways to punish the institution, possibly by limiting funding. Former Senator Rick Santorum told The Washington Post that “the focus will come off NATO and will move squarely onto the U.N.” The implication here is that Trump has a certain store of natural belligerence and the key is to get it focused on the right target.