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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsEyeing Orbn, Trump endorses a 'strongman' leadership style
The charitable explanation is that Trump likes a "strongman" style because he doesn't know what the word means. Then there's the uncharitable explanation.
Link to tweet
The charitable explanation is that Trump keeps touting a "strongman" leadership style because the former president, who's never taken a political science course, doesn't know what the word means.
Then there's the uncharitable explanation.
Then there's the uncharitable explanation.
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/eyeing-orban-trump-endorses-strongman-leadership-style-rcna169807
Donald Trump hasnt made much of an effort to hide his over-the-top support for Hungarys Viktor Orbán, despite or more likely, because of the prime ministers authoritarian takeover of his country. As an Associated Press report noted in March, the Republicans embrace of the Hungarian leader reflects the former presidents support for autocratic leaders who are part of a global pushback against democratic traditions.
But when praising the prime minister, the former president also tends to use a specific word. In January, for example, he defended Orbán at a rally, telling supporters, Some people dont like him because hes too strong. Its nice to have a strongman running the country.
During his latest Fox News interview, Trump used nearly identical phrasing. The New York Times reported:
Right off the bat, the fact that Trump and his allies have embraced Orbán and his authoritarian approach says a great deal about the radicalization of Republican politics and the partys weakening support for democracy......
Circling back to our earlier coverage, the most benign explanation for such rhetoric is that the former president knows effectively nothing about political science, political history, and political philosophy, and as such, its possible that he has no idea what a strongman even is. From Trumps perspective, perhaps the word just sounds nice because it combines strong and man. Its not as if people should want a weak man leading a country, right?
But as NYUs Ruth Ben-Ghiat, who literally wrote the book on the subject, told Time magazine a few years ago, Strongmen are a subset of authoritarian who require total loyalty, bend democracy around [their] own needs, and use different forms of machismo to interact with their people and with other rulers.
All of which brings us to the uncharitable explanation: Trump knows full well what a strongman leadership style entails, and when he declared that countries sometimes need a strongman, it was the latest piece of evidence that the Republican nominee is effectively running on an authoritarian platform......
Ahead of the 2024 elections, hes doing it again. The Republican nominee continues to make positive comments about the man who earned the Butcher of Baghdad label. He offers gushing admiration for Beijings ruthless control over Chinas population. He struggles to contain how impressed he is with his benefactor in Moscow.
And he applauds Orbán because he simply dictates, This is the way its going to be.
Trump keeps telling everyone the kind of leader he wants to be. Voters would be wise to listen.
But when praising the prime minister, the former president also tends to use a specific word. In January, for example, he defended Orbán at a rally, telling supporters, Some people dont like him because hes too strong. Its nice to have a strongman running the country.
During his latest Fox News interview, Trump used nearly identical phrasing. The New York Times reported:
At his town hall tonight, Donald Trump praised Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary, who has embraced policies American conservatives have looked to as a model. Trump bemoaned the state of international conflicts that have raged in the last few years and seemed to suggest he could solve problems with force. Sometimes you need a strongman; hes a strongman, Trump said of Orban.
Right off the bat, the fact that Trump and his allies have embraced Orbán and his authoritarian approach says a great deal about the radicalization of Republican politics and the partys weakening support for democracy......
Circling back to our earlier coverage, the most benign explanation for such rhetoric is that the former president knows effectively nothing about political science, political history, and political philosophy, and as such, its possible that he has no idea what a strongman even is. From Trumps perspective, perhaps the word just sounds nice because it combines strong and man. Its not as if people should want a weak man leading a country, right?
But as NYUs Ruth Ben-Ghiat, who literally wrote the book on the subject, told Time magazine a few years ago, Strongmen are a subset of authoritarian who require total loyalty, bend democracy around [their] own needs, and use different forms of machismo to interact with their people and with other rulers.
All of which brings us to the uncharitable explanation: Trump knows full well what a strongman leadership style entails, and when he declared that countries sometimes need a strongman, it was the latest piece of evidence that the Republican nominee is effectively running on an authoritarian platform......
Ahead of the 2024 elections, hes doing it again. The Republican nominee continues to make positive comments about the man who earned the Butcher of Baghdad label. He offers gushing admiration for Beijings ruthless control over Chinas population. He struggles to contain how impressed he is with his benefactor in Moscow.
And he applauds Orbán because he simply dictates, This is the way its going to be.
Trump keeps telling everyone the kind of leader he wants to be. Voters would be wise to listen.
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Eyeing Orbn, Trump endorses a 'strongman' leadership style (Original Post)
LetMyPeopleVote
Sep 6
OP
LetMyPeopleVote
(151,829 posts)1. TFG says countries with dictators and autocrats are better because "those countries don't have crime like we do"