Most people couldn’t handle being a politician. It’s not that the job itself is too hard. In many cases, the actual work is much less than an average American struggling to pay bills and support a family. It’s that the public scrutiny and attacks from the media, opponents, and even friends requires an extremely thick skin.
Donald Trump has demonstrated that his skin is very thin. When he’s attacked, he’s demonstrated a child-like counterattack mentality. When things get tough with anyone in the media, he calls them unfair. Everything is unfair to him when it doesn’t go exactly his way. Everyone who doesn’t bow down and kiss his feet is being unfair. It’s all unfair and he reacts the way that most people would react.
It’s endearing to see someone who simply can’t take attacks. We see attacks on other politicians and most handle it with grace. Once they’ve gone through the trials to get to the national stage, their skins, which were likely thick in the first place, are now battle-hardened. Whether they realize it or not, most Americans couldn’t imagine handling these types of attack with any semblance of grace. Trump’s paper-thin skin is a reflection of his base support. Many of them would react like children just as Trump does.
Trump doesn’t like Megyn Kelly because her question was unfair. He doesn’t like Hugh Hewitt because his question was unfair. He doesn’t like Fox News because they are unfair to him. The trend is very clear. He wants fairness for everyone.
They had no definitive proof against Tom Brady or #patriots. If Hillary doesn't have to produce Emails, why should Tom? Very unfair!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 11, 2015
There are three problems with this.
- “Fairness” is a pseudonym often used by politicians to replace the word “socialism” and based upon the liberal tax plan he’s been promoting, he may be more fiscally liberal than the average American can see.
- Thick skin isn’t required to win an election, but it definitely helps. Of course, it’s a requirement to be successful after you’ve won an election, so we might be in trouble here.
- The qualities that make him endearing to a quarter of the voters are the qualities that can make someone a heck of a businessman and dealmaker. Unfortunately, they don’t make for a good statesman which is exactly what the country needs right now.
He’s rich. He’s cruel. He’s greedy. He gets what he wants. These are things that many Americans wish they could have.
There’s no doubt that Trump knows how to put together sound bites and entertain Americans the way they want to be entertained. Is it enough to fool people into believing he’s capable of winning the election?