Research Paper on Machiavelli's Principles with Trump's Leadership Policies

Introduction

For years, a considerable proportion of American public have complained about The Establishment and how it had made most presidents appear as puppets. That was the background that led to the election of Donald Trump as he was largely considered an outsider. When examining his leadership style, one cannot help but think of the Machiavellian principles that appear to be making him seem unpresidential. [1. Niccolo Machiavelli was an infamous philosopher who had a lot to say about the qualities of a good leader.] [2. In his philosophies, he included qualities of a leader that advocated for war even when peace prevailed.] [3. Additionally, he outlined that whether a leader does something wrong or immoral, he does this for the justification of his position in the society or the entire nation.] [4. Machiavelli's essay The qualities of a Prince provides leaders with guidance on how to exercise their authority through the direct information that he puts across without mincing his words.] [5. There are instances in the essay where he encourages leaders to use questionable means of retaining power just as a prince does.] [6. Throughout the presidency of Donald Trump, several citizens have complained about him misusing his position, mainly through harsh rhetorics, which are unexpected of him as a president (Nicolo 54).]

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Niccolo Machiavelli provided guidance on what makes a good leader. His philosophy entailed leadership that advocates for war even in times of peace. In addition, he pointed out that good leaders do anything to justify their position even if it is wrong and immoral. Today, most Americans might be having the same feeling regarding President Donald Trump.

Many people have described the president of the United States as Machiavellian because of the way he lies and deceives others by manipulating them where necessary. Other people also think that Donald Trump has the qualities that were recommended by Machiavelli in the field of politics during the Renaissance era. Machiavelli described the unethical behavior of political leaders like being dishonest and killing the innocent as an effective and normal approach that should be considered under certain circumstances. Machiavelli, however, did not mean that ruthlessness should be implemented in every common situation; his intentions were that some unacceptable acts put people in line with the state laws.

The political treatise of the 16th century is considered as very essential, yet it contradicts the field of political science. Additionally, Machiavelli is viewed as the founder of real politics, which at times is regarded as pragmatic. To some extent, he also laminated the game theory by outlining that negotiating is being classical, stating that the crazy player is the only person who has an advantage over of the other; he will only win the game if he incredibly shows that he cannot control himself. Giving an illustration in the modern context, when two cars race against each other and eminently crash, if the driver who seems crazy throws away his steering wheel through the window, the other driver will concede (Belliotti 384).

Machiavelli states with a cold-hearted candidness that a prince should think or aim at nothing less than war. Besides, he should not study anything less than the organization and discipline of that war. According to Machiavelli, a commander should master the art of war because it is very necessary for him as a ruler. He should learn how to coerce force for him to find easy time managing the state due to the reality of power struggle.

The degree of power of this kind of a ruler will identify him with the place he has in the society. The people who appear at the top seem more powerful than those below them do for it is naturally the order of how things should be. Therefore, the person on top must appear more powerful for the existence of the state to prosper. He does not have to be morally upright to lead; he only requires becoming more powerful for the maintenance of the state.

Machiavelli's theory contradicts other traditional political theories because he does not base his theory on the pre-established framework of ethics. During his time, he observed that morality was never concerned with the political affairs. Even worse, it always hindered rulers from carrying out their duties towards the maintenance of the states. He, therefore, differentiated between a good man and a good leader; he stressed that a good leader does not have to be good when exercising his duties.

However, the traditional philosophies suggest for moral rectification for one to be considered a good leader. When making decisions towards human affairs, he must be wise to make prudent and consistent decisions. He must also act according to the norms of the society as well as the conduct expected from him. His authority can only win him respect from his subjects if his character is virtuous. Even though, Machiavelli observed that the character of goodness does not assure the people of the ruler's success. Therefore, the ruler must emerge powerfully rather than being moral to maintain the government successfully.

According to Machiavelli's cardinal rule, power is very vital when it comes to politics. Its importance surpasses that of virtue. He stresses that power entails inducing fear to the subjects; your subjects will only follow your orders if they fear you. People cannot follow the law on the bounds of love; instead, it is the fear of being punished, which keeps them from breaking the law. Power allows the ruler to command and implement strict state laws. Therefore, Machiavelli suggests that the activities of a ruler should be able to maintain his power; any other task is irrelevant.

In The Prince, Machiavelli gives detailed advice to leaders and those who aspire for state leadership. For the Prince to maintain power, he must prepare himself to vary his conduct depending on the changing circumstances of fortune, which may cause him to deviate from the right conduct and enter upon the path of doing wrong when the need arises. He insists that a leader should be realistic to confront political affairs.

Idealism is a far fetch quality for becoming a leader, stressing that a leader must act in a cunning and deceitful manner besides being ethical, but he must also become flexible enough to determine the necessity of such actions (Jacobus). However, this does not mean that the leader must become evil in his leadership. He points out that the leader should be aware of the situation to determine the choice of his actions. The leader must, therefore, appear before the eyes of the public as an honest ruler who is fair and just since the people often want a virtuous leader. Nonetheless, he must do vicious acts when necessary.

Additionally, Machiavelli outlines that a leader must also become virtuous. Traditionally, virtue means human excellence, which involves a proper understanding of the faculties of human beings. The ancient philosophers standardized this formula through philosophical theories such as the theory of the golden mean by Aristotle, which states that a virtuous act resulting from the habit of an individual depends on what is deficient or in excess.

On the other hand, Machiavelli perceives virtue as a sense of being able to adapt to various human situations (Jacobus). This flexibility in disposition enables rulers to maintain their states through great achievements. The society is often a political battlefield that requires the leader to exercise his power strategically. He should be able to know which strategy fits best in a particular scenario of battle. If at all he needs to kill his closest colleague or enslave some women to win the battle, then he must not think otherwise.

According to the Machiavellian Fortuna, a leader must be bold just like a young man. He must demonstrate this spirit to confront fortune. He proceeds by saying that fortune is like a moody woman who can ruin people's lives by expressing the sheer of her furious nature. Fortune is the political enemy of order that destroys the state's tranquility just like a moody woman in the most devastating manner, which comes at an unexpected moment. Fortune, moreover, can cause a leader to deviate from the main agenda of proper governorship.

Therefore, leaders must be bold and vigorous as young men to manage fortune. He must not become the victim of circumstance; instead, he should be very aggressive when governing the people. He must always prepare himself for outcomes of fortune to be able to ravage and tame her to allow him to execute his will. His virtuousness will make him victorious because it enables him to acquire the required dispositional response to the vicissitudes of fortune. A virtuous leader must know how to respond and be ready for the onslaught of the unpredictable fortune of a man at anytime, anywhere. Power only stays with a ruler who has virtue.

Ruthless and devious politicians are often described as using the leadership principles of Machiavelli. However, this is a rare case in America since the new president-elect has not embodied these Machiavellian traits. When you go through the list of controversial characteristics of Donald Trump, you will notice some of the qualities that the cynical Machiavelli believed a tough ruler essentially needed.

Trump can lie, which Machiavelli thought might be necessary at times when it came to executing leadership policies. It is important to make citizens believe some false developments, so the order of the state can be maintained. He can bully others like some potentates from Italy that Machiavelli praised. Sometimes he boasts of a voracious appetite for sex just like Machiavelli; however, this does not mean that Trump displays Machiavelli's attributes, which he believed were necessary for the management of the states as a modern ruler. Nobody needs a 21st-century neo-feudal dictator to lead a democratic state. Freedom, and specifically democracy is the wish of every American citizen so any form of dictatorship would reduce the election chances of presidential candidates. However, the citizens of America voted In Donald Trump as their new president-elect partly because perhaps he shares the concept of strength and virtue as suggested by Machiavelli.

During the days of Machiavelli, the version of political correctness was often mocked. He believed that most manuals that were meant to advise the princes were irrelevant for the call of goodness instead of strength. For him, leadership entailed the decisive execution of power and not morality. The prince needed to develop a strong state and not necessarily one, which seemed good (Coletta and Paul 964). By doing this, the prince would earn the respect that leaders require from the citizens, one which would align them to the governing rules.

The responsibility of a leader is to see the world through reality and not morality. Any leader, who always wishes to do well, will surely be destroyed among those who view the world in reality. Therefore, a ruler that wishes to retain being powerful must learn how to employ his strength when necessary. The reality quality of leaders aids citizens in viewing the world as it is, not as people wish. Trump might have been hungry for the public affirmation because most leaders inevitably wish for their subject to fear and love them.

However, Machiavelli warned that it was the much safer choice to be feared. The model of a virtuous leader according to Machiavelli was Cesare Borgia who was a rapacious and a bloodthirsty military leader in several accounts of history. However, he believed that these qualities enabled the commander to execute a deceive governance (Magun 48). Many people saw him as a cruel ruler, yet he ended the Romagna disorders through his cruelty, thus bringing peace, love, and u...