It models off of what's fed to it, it's more like a complex network of parrots.
No the programmers are lying
It is not hard to manipulate it into saying almost anything you want it to.
It's the ultimate Yes Man, it feeds delusional forms of narcissism. Check the reddits on this shit, there's people hitting this like a drug that substitutes companionship and shit.
A lot of the people who fall for this trap are people who are used to hearing 'No' a lot, to the point of resentment. It gives them a release they otherwise do not find in life.