In addition to disgusting me at virtually every level possible, the president of the United States is now employing an annoying personal habit that sends me into orbit.

Donald J. Trump tweeted this message today: James Clapper, who famously got caught lying to Congress, is now an authority on Donald Trump. Will he show you his beautiful letter to me?

The president is referring to himself in the third person. Yes, it’s one of those verbal tics that suggests to me that the person who’s doing the talking seeks to place even greater importance on himself by making sure we know his name.

Personal note: I use the male pronoun because women — as a general rule — aren’t as inclined to use this third-person reference when discussing themselves.

So, Trump is challenging the veracity of former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, who said this week that he wonders about the president’s fitness for his job. Clapper said he is appalled at Trump’s behavior on the podium at that Phoenix campaign rally.

Frankly, I share Clapper’s assessment of Trump.

Now the president has entered the realm of supreme annoyance by using that third-person verbal reference the way high-profile athletes do. Grrr.

I’m tellin’ ya, it drives John Kanelis absolutely crazy.