Ed Yong, in The Atlantic:

As November nears, the coronavirus is surging again, with cases rising to record-breaking heights for the third time. To control the pandemic, changes are necessary, but Trump has proved that he does not learn from his mistakes—perhaps the most costly of his failings. If he is reelected, he will continue on the same path, and so will the coronavirus. More Americans will be sickened, disabled, and killed. Donald Trump is unchanging; the election offers an opportunity for the country to change instead.

We often have spirited conversations about the issues of the day at dinner. A few weeks ago, our son (age 6) asked a question that still continues to wreck me in small and large ways: “Does Donald Trump know he’s doing these bad things?”

I have no idea what Donald Trump knows or thinks but one thing has been crystal clear since even before he ran for president: the man is wholly incurious, incapable of empathy, and ossified to the core. It is simply who he is. He doesn’t learn from his mistakes because he’s incapable of doing so. The cost of that inability is borne by the world.