Your Least Favourite Politician is Probably Not as Stupid as You Think They Are

Berk Berkeliev

Your least favourite politician is probably not as stupid as you think they are. World leaders like Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Justin Trudeau are all high-profile and high-controversy figures. It is important that I make a clear distinction between being stupid and cruel. In no way is this article a defense of the crimes and wicked deeds committed by some of these people. What it is, however, is a recognition that the media only shows us the tip of the iceberg of what happens inside the most influential offices in the world. Most of what is shown to the public has been carefully calculated, planned, and scripted by the hundreds of people working around these leaders. It is most likely that we are rarely conveyed a truly authentic message, and in most cases, the headlines, interviews, press conferences, and conventions are delivering a message distant from reality.

Let us begin by examining Donald Trump. Outspoken, unapologetic, a large personality, and a terrible liar are some of the words used to describe Trump. While his character, integrity, and even political skill can be called under question, his fittedness to be the presidential candidate for the Republican Party in 2016 cannot. Trump is a man who seemingly climbed the financial ladder by himself and lived out the “American Dream” to become a highly successful self-made billionaire. That persona is exactly what the GOP needed in a presidential candidate, and his ability to stay in character was what pulled right-wing Americans off their couches and into the voting booths in 2016.

As a former KGB agent, Vladimir Putin is a master of deceit, evasion, and sabotage. Niccolo Machiavelli once wrote that any means to gain power are justifiable. Putin took that advice to heart and was not only able to grasp power in 2000 but has managed to keep it indefinitely; political analysts predict that he will stay head of the Kremlin until 2036. Putin, much like Trump, pretends to be a man of the people. He has previously shown off his Judo skills, participated in environmental work in Siberia, and done firefighting work. Even the Kremlin’s official website has posted pictures of him fishing and riding horseback to make him seem like a commoner. Why would Putin engage in any sort of physical activity common to Russians, when instead he could spend time at his $1.4 billion “palace,” which is rumoured to include a casino, a spa, Turkish baths, a hookah bar, and even a pole-dancing room? Meanwhile 12 per cent of Russians live below the poverty line.

A hereditary prince is one who did not come into power through his own will but rather inherited through his predecessors. In Machiavelli’s book The Prince, he argues that this is the easiest way to become a ruler and says that even a minimally competent individual can hold onto power through this method. Can you think of any minimally competent, hereditary princes in power today? Justin Trudeau, much like Donald Trump, was never admired for his political skills or his leadership abilities. He was simply the perfect fit as the leader of Canada’s Liberal Party in 2015. So while Trudeau’s childishness, poor policies, lavish vacations, and bad haircuts might justify calling him stupid, the Liberal Party and the people working around him must be given credit for winning their second consecutive federal election in 2021.

So the next time we see a politician doing something distasteful, it is not enough for us to call them stupid. It is our responsibility as citizens to do our own research to try to see through the fog of lies and propaganda to find their real motives. Because at the end of the day, most politicians are not trying to make our lives better; they are simply trying to hold onto power for as long as possible.