The Tribune

With the US presidential election in November now not far away, many people are following almost daily the activities of former US president and Republican Party nominee, Donald Trump.

As is well known, he has become famous for holding regular outdoor rallies that attract thousands of people and he has increased the number of these in the run-up to the election. Even the fiercest and most outspoken of his numerous critics admit that Trump is the master of such occasions. In a relaxed and seemingly effortless manner, he deploys the eloquence of the acknowledged successful TV performer that he is, all the while holding his massive audiences in thrall to his message that he repeats constantly and consistently about making America great again.

He is fluent and articulate though all can see that, not unreasonably, he speaks with the aid of a teleprompter. But he also often goes off script and ad-libs easily without losing his main thread. He appears to be without nerves of any sort and exudes the self-confidence of someone who knows exactly what he is talking about – in his case having delivered the same message time and time again. He commands the attention of his audience by using the technique of skilled orators who know how to make it appear that they are talking directly to individuals in a crowd watching them and listening to them.

It is said that Donald Trump represents an extraordinary enigma of contemporary American politics by attracting almost messianic fervour and extreme criticism for his crudity and boorishness in equal measure. But, whether or not you like him and what he stands for, one has to admit that his performance at rallies is masterly as he dominates vast crowds and gets his message across to huge numbers apparently mesmerised by his every utterance.

One wonders whether many of them have paused to think what his claim to make America great again really means in practice. But it sounds good and is undoubtedly something they want to hear as patriotic Americans.

Then, of course, recently the American political world changed dramatically with the failed assassination attempt at one of these rallies as well as the highly successful Republican National Convention in Ohio where Trump was lionised as a hero, and – later - Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential election race.

While reading about the Republican convention, I came across the unpleasant remarks by actor Robert de Niro who in a TV interview called Trump sociopathic, psychopathic, malignant, narcissistic and dangerous. To my eye, this sort of extreme characterisation of a former US president – and the likely next one - tells one more about the lack of reasoned judgement of the speaker than the subject of the personal criticism. The same applies to political commentators who similarly display their prejudice about a former US president for whom 74 million voted in the 2020 election and is therefore now a hugely consequential figure politically – unlike in the run-up to the 2016 election when his candidacy was widely considered to be something of a joke.

To some, he appears to be a not very pleasant individual. He claims to be a good counter-puncher when attacked by others and shows himself to be a glowering presence, who indulges in crude speech and rambling rants together with endless misdemeanours and aggressive behaviour. Furthermore, he has a reputation as a liar and serial philanderer – and for cheating at golf!

Researching this further, I came across an interesting piece in a foreign newspaper about the background to Donald Trump’s political success.

The writer contends that the former president has what psychologists call an “extrinsic” personality, valuing, in particular, prestige, status, image, fame, power and wealth as opposed to the so-called “intrinsic pole of values” like empathy, intimacy, the human need for social acceptance, respect for universal human rights and equality and the protection of people and the environment. He goes on to say that, with Trump’s great wealth, his stance as a celebratory politician is based on his professed willingness to protect the interests of so-called ordinary people against the establishment in Washington who lead a privileged existence themselves while telling the rest of the country how to conduct their lives and imposing taxes and regulations upon them.

The article explains further that Trump portrays himself as the champion of the man in the street to “take on those people in Washington” who ignore the interests of the less powerful, because he has the wealth, other resources and power to do so. The fact that he arrives at rallies in his own Boeing 737 with “Trump” emblazoned on its fuselage in large letters tells its own story. What is more, his often bad behaviour encourages ordinary people to see him as “one of us”. He and his family are portrayed as ordinary people themselves who are dedicated to fighting for other ordinary people in the face of the Washington bureaucracy that he calls the swamp. Above all, he stresses that he does not need to do this at all when, as a rich retiree, he could be spending more time with his grandchildren or playing more golf. But he is doing it for the people – and therein lies his popularity.

Some critics are surprised that many people are persuaded by all this – that this former president is fighting on their behalf against some establishment power that is trying to deny Americans their democratic rights in some way – and they appear to ignore the fact that he clearly revels in the power and glory of the presidency so that his motivation is partly driven by that.

Perhaps it demonstrates the current deep public disillusion and disenchantment with the political class. Donald Trump will surely succeed further if he can continue to convince others that he is the one to “deliver” on behalf of the American people. But to many foreign observers what that really means in practice remains unclear – and there are more and more who genuinely fear a Trump victory in November.