While reading through the 9th chapter of Victor Davis Hanson’s The Case for Trump, I was struck by his assertion that Trump is no worse than previous presidents. He argues instead that Trump’s personal life is simply more public because he committed many of his ‘social crimes’ before he became President of the United States. Not only this, but today’s media reports on him without restraint. There has been no effort to conceal his personal business. Hanson goes into great detail when explaining some of the previous presidents’ personal lives, arguing that just because they did not make morally appropriate choices does not mean that they were ineffective presidents. In fact, some of the most successful presidents made some of the most despicable personal choices while in office. He questions whether Americans would prefer a politically successful President or a President like Obama who may seem to be a good person, but who ends up doubling the country’s debt.
While I recognize where Hansen is coming from due to the fact that he believes that the President’s personal life should be kept separate from his performance politically, I struggle with this question. I believe that the President of the United States is representative of the country as a whole, and therefore their personal decisions should be considered and known. The President stands for the entire country, and therefore their choices reflect on the country as well. So, in response to chapter 9, I believe that while it is of course necessary to consider one’s political capabilities when determining whether a person is a successful President or not, I believe it is also necessary to consider what kind of person they are and how that might reflect on the rest of the country.
This chapter can go either way for those reading it, I understand where you are coming from, how a president should have a clean record and be a good, clean president due to the fact that they are representing America. But, I agree with this to a certain extent. President’s are humans as well, they may have difficulties in life. I feel Americans can relate to the president more if they understand that the president has been through struggles as well. However, these struggles are also limited. A president cannot have a terrible reputation but one that has grown from the difficulties he has faced. This also has escalated in the fact that social media has been prevalent, it has emphasized the president personal life greatly. Allowing citizens to access information about the president that would not have been in existent in the pass. With this knowledge presidents in the future need to be careful on how they act in life, just like an everyday citizen does as well.
I completely agree with the point that a president is much more relatable and real if they have overcome difficulties in their life and made mistakes. I also agree that there is a spectrum of struggles or indiscretions that should be considered. In addition to this I feel that timing also makes a significant difference. If a president makes a mistake when they are young, this reflects on them differently than a mistake they may have made in the past couple years. As we discussed in class, if a person was caught drinking in high school, this holds less weight than that person being accused of sexual assault in their adult years. All of these things are important points to consider when weighing effectiveness and morality in a president.
Lily,
I agree with your argument wholeheartedly. I think that even though you don’t necessarily need to be a saint to be a good president, the president is very representative of your country, so you do want them to be an honorable person. The president should be a positive representation of America, and since it is one of the hardest jobs to get in the world, we shouldn’t have to choose between someone who is morally good or good at the job, we should get both. I know everyone has flaws and makes mistakes, but that is why minor mistakes such as posting a picture drinking as a teenager should be forgiven, while more serious offenses should be taken into consideration.
I agree with your argument some elements of a President’s personal life should be taken into consideration and they should share the ideals and values of a nation. It is important that a President is representative of the people they are backed by and thus certain aspects of ones’ personal life should undoubtedly be taken into account. I think Trump presents a unique case. Not only were some of his pre-presidency decisions morally questionable, but he was also under a microscope due to his celebrity status and wealth. And while it is safe to say that there have been no major efforts to conceal many private aspects of his life, much of Trump’s past was already uncovered and its publicity was only amplified by his presidency. Overall, I agree that a good President should be an upstanding exemplar of the people they represent, but should be allowed to retain certain aspects of their private life and not publicize their every movement.
I agree with what you are saying in this post, I think that because the president is our representative abroad he should act and speak the way a president should. It seem that Trump does not act like a president but almost that of a disgruntle citizen. I understand why many Americans voted for him in the election, and it was because he was different and open with them. Yet, now a couple years into her term I find it so hard to think of him as a good representative. There have been so many times were Trump has made a fool of himself on the global stage and It makes America lose face and look stupid because we elected him. He does have a lot of good qualities that are helping the country but I think that his personality was over looked to lightly and now that is being realized by so many Americans.
When you say that we should “consider a person’s political capabilities and look into their personal life when determining if they should be president of our country,” I have to disagree, someones job is to do their duty while on the clock, and in this new aged democracy, there is no clocking in and clocking out, trump is followed by the media 24/7. Well he does offer out his personal life himself, I believe what he does not show to the public should not be taken into consideration when determining whether or not he is a good president. Normal people get to clock out and have a life of their own on the weekends and it is up to them to share with their coworkers when they get back on Monday, where they went on their fishing trip with their son, but Trump is being watched like a hawk and every one of his actions are being broadcasted for the entire nation to see.
I agree that we should at least consider what kind of person a presidential candidate is and how they might reflect on the rest of the country. It is interesting to note that Hanson argues that Trump’s actions are no worse that previous presidents’. Trump’s private life has been exposed to the public, and the constant media presence in society has given the public a comprehensive view of Trump’s personal life. If the media were as prevalent in the times of JFK and Clinton, things would have been a lot different for them as their private lives would be way more open to the public.
I agree with you that the president’s character and personality is important to consider, especially since nowadays the president’s personal life is so exposed to the public whether they like it or not. I think that anyone wishing to be in this position has to realize that they are going to be judged and criticized about everything that they do, and that the American public needs to realize that. For me when looking at a presidential candidate, although I have not been able to vote yet in an election, I think it is important to find a balance between a morally good and successful president. One of the main issues, as Hanson describes, with Trump is that many external views do not take Trump seriously because of the way that he presents himself. It is instances like this that I find it very important to have a presidential candidate who presents strong morality.