The Donald Trump crisis: the image of the messianic leader, mental tension and the fragility of global security

Can we brush aside, by saying "He's Trump, whatever he says is fine," the moment at one stage of the war that US President Trump opened against Iran together with Israel, when he coolly announced, giving a day and an hour, that he would destroy an entire Iranian Civilization? Or should we take it as a turning point in world politics?

We fear that world politics now seems to have reached a threshold that can no longer be explained solely in the language of inter-state rivalry, energy corridors, war scenarios or diplomatic bargaining. Beyond being merely a matter of US foreign policy, the issue is the psychology of the leadership at the head of the world's greatest military power, its relationship with reality, and the effect of this relationship on global security. The developments of recent weeks show that the Trump matter has ceased to be a debate about political leadership in the classical sense and has turned into a conflict between institutional reason and personal impulses, between democratic legitimacy and a charismatic cult, between strategic calculation and psychological overflow.

On one side is the harsh language of threat that Trump used during the Strait of Hormuz crisis, implying that an entire civilization could be destroyed. On the other is the image circulating on social media that portrays Trump as a virtually messianic figure, a sacred leader dispensing healing, a heavenly savior. At first glance one may look like politics and the other like propaganda. In reality, however, the two are the two faces of the same state of mind: the desire for unlimited power and the demand for sanctified legitimacy.

THE LANGUAGE OF THREAT AND THE LANGUAGE OF THE MESSIAH ARE FED FROM THE SAME SOURCE

When a leader begins to see himself not merely as an elected politician but as history's special appointee, the language he uses changes too. Rival states are no longer merely rivals; they are blocs of evil standing in the way of good. War is not merely a conflict of interests; it is a war of destiny. Victory is not merely a diplomatic success; it is an epic of personal salvation. In such a mental world compromise is perceived as weakness, recognizing limits as diminishment, and stepping back as an attitude bordering on betrayal.

The "all or nothing" language that Trump displays in moments of crisis is in fact a thoroughly radicalized version of the language of the crusade wars that the younger Bush began exactly a quarter century ago with "either you are with us or with them." That is, Trump's future was evident from Bush. If I do not get what I want there will be destruction. If I do not win everyone loses. If my authority is questioned the order collapses. This is not ordinary political self-confidence. This is the leader's identification of his own destiny with the destiny of the state. In history many authoritarian leaders have walked at the same threshold.

WHY IS A SACRED IMAGE PRODUCED?

The image that shows Trump at the center of figures who heal by touching the head, who save people with hands radiating light, who come from heaven cannot be read as random internet humor. Images of this kind are conscious instruments of modern political communication. Here the leader is not a president but a prophet-like figure. Not a bureaucrat but a chosen one. Not an accountable administrator but a savior who must not be questioned.

This kind of representation has, above all, the function of making criticism illegitimate. If the leader is only a politician he can be criticized. But if he is a savior figure, criticism is presented not merely as political opposition but as an attack on the community's sacred hope. Of course an untouchable, uncriticizable sacred leadership is Trump's desire, but it is clear that the voter will not respond positively to this and that it will even backfire.

A second function is to establish an emotional bond with the voter. The voter no longer supports a program; he attaches himself to a person. Rational loyalty gives way to emotional loyalty. That is why it is highly likely to backfire. It requires bypassing the Republican Party and establishing a direct relationship with the voter, and how much the party will consent to this and how long it will remain a spectator are the questions that come to mind first. As far as we can see, in this case the party too is uneasy, and in fact the point at which Trump feels himself at the summit is also the point at which he begins a rapid decline.

Of course, the need to use this Messianic language also has a third function: to postpone failure in the face of economic problems, war mistakes or institutional crises by bringing into play the feeling of "but he is still the elected leader." But the more striking result is the deepening of polarization through the narrowing of the middle ground between those who believe in the savior and those who see him as a threat. This is probably what we see in the US today. The poll results we touched on the other day reflect this polarization in all its starkness.

WHY ARE INSTITUTIONS SOUNDING THE ALARM?

The most critical dimension of the Trump crisis is not only his rhetoric but the pressure it produces on institutions. The presidential system is built on the leader's being strong; but it also rests on checks and balances. If the leader begins to see himself above these mechanisms, the system is strained.

For this reason the hesitations within the Pentagon in recent developments, the debates in legal circles and the discussion of constitutional paths are important. Because the problem is not so much the harshness of a statement as the possibility that such statements may turn into the real chain of command. A president's words are not the words of an ordinary citizen. They can set in motion markets, armies, alliances and war calculations anywhere in the world.

For this reason, if a leader has psychological instability, this ceases to be a matter of private life; it turns into a matter of global security.

WHY IS THE HORMUZ CRISIS A TURNING POINT?

The Strait of Hormuz is not merely a geographical passage; it is the nerve line of energy flow. Every immoderate expression used here produces wide consequences, from oil prices to maritime security, from Asian economies to the risk of regional war. The language of "destruction of a civilization" used in such a file cannot be seen merely as harsh rhetoric. It erodes the confidence that global actors have in the leadership.

Indeed, the positions of Russia and China, the unease in Europe, the distant stance of the countries of the region are all tied to the same question: Are decisions in Washington taken by institutional reason, or by momentary impulses?

In the international system, when a leader is unpredictable, not only his rivals but his allies too develop a defensive reflex.

THE REAL DANGER FOR AMERICA

The Trump phenomenon does not consist only of Trump's person. It is the social ground that makes him possible. Deep polarization, economic insecurity, anger at elites, cultural anxieties and identity wars grow such figures. If this ground does not change, even if the person goes, the model remains.

That is, the matter is not one man; it is the political psychology that seeks a savior man. When democratic institutions weaken, societies want charisma, not procedure. They seek mythology, not a program. And at that point politics ceases to be the art of producing solutions; it turns into a war of belonging.

THE REAL DANGER FOR THE WORLD

America is not an ordinary country. Because of its dollar system, its NATO network, global finance, technological superiority and military capacity, a leadership crisis there does not stay within its borders. Psychological imbalance in another country produces a national crisis; in America it produces a global wave.

For this reason it would be a mistake for the world to follow the Trump debate merely as American domestic politics. For the matter is not who will win the election but how the mind of leadership is to be protected in the nuclear age.

POWER AND REASON ARE NOT THE SAME THING

History is full of strong leaders. But not every strong leader is wise, balanced or trustworthy. Power is not a guarantee of reason. Indeed, unchecked power magnifies the effect of the loss of reason.

The question we face today is this: Will democratic systems be able to limit charismatic overflow? Will institutions be able to stand against personal impulses? Will societies be able to return from the desire for a sacred leader to the reason of the citizen?

The Trump crisis may be called by one person's name. But in reality this crisis is the greater crisis of our age: Will truth win, or spectacle? Will the institution remain, or the cult? Will reason rule, or impulse?

The world today stands precisely at the threshold of these questions.