Trump has changed his party affiliation five times since 1987. He was a registered democrat for many years, even going on CNN and discussing that he identifies as a Democrat. While campaigning as a Republican he said repeatedly that he didn't align with the party's platform. Then, after all that, he recently was talking about starting an entirely new party.

> Trump thinks he’s a Republican.

His own statements, both during and prior to his time as president, strongly suggest otherwise.

> When your mental model is persistently at odds with the way things work out in reality, you need to reexamine your mental model.

You're absolutely right.