People, Personas, and Politics 13 – Presidenting
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen and Rick Rosner
Publication (Outlet/Website): People, Personas, and Politics
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2017/04/01
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Scott Douglas Jacobsen: I am reminded of the idea that someone’s character crystallizes at age 30, approximately, especially for men. This is an opinion by the late Lee Kuan Yew, who I agree with on some things – disagree with on other things. Trump is 70?
Rick Rosner: Yup.
SDJ: So I do not see him changing fundamental personality characters. Or if so, not much, not much.
RR: Well, hold on, he could get worse. He has always been kind of a dick. As a younger man, his dickishness was leavened or somewhat compensated for by some degree of self-knowledge and a certain amount of wanting to be seen as a fun guy. He went on Howard Stern all of the time. He was okay talking about his sexual history.
SDJ: Gross.
RR: Yea, but people have commented on how the pre-presidential Trump smiled a lot. He wanted to look like a happy, affable guy.
SDJ: Yes.
RR: Presidential Trump scowls all of the time.
SDJ: Yes.
RR: And some people have analyzed that as him wanting to project an aura of seriousness and heft, and threat. There being some play acting in that. Yea, so, he’s been kind of a parody of a big businessman. But then as president, he is kind of a parody of presidential behaviour, what he thinks a president should be. There are other things to take into account, other factors. He probably doesn’t have strongly held political beliefs.
SDJ: He might be the first atheist president.
RR: Well, you’d have to analyze other presidents and their beliefs.
SDJ: I take into account the Carter phenomenon. Where with Carter – I believe this has been analyzed by professionals or experts – with Jimmy Carter becoming president and being a sincere, believing Christian, Republican analysts saw this and decided to take advantage of this. You know this. Where every or most subsequent presidential candidates, even the Democrat aisle, have to express some belief in God, preferably if not exclusively Christian of some form, he doesn’t seem to have that.
RR: Carter had earnest religious beliefs, but just about every other president since Carter. You can probably question their belief to some extent. Trump is delivering a commencement address at Liberty University. He has made his religiosity—even though, it is less believable that he is religious than it is for most presidents. But you can similarly question the other presidents’ religiousness.
America was founded as a non-religious country. Once Carter showed what you can do with religion in politics, the Republicans recruited the Evangelicals and made them a political force.
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