“To say no to President Trump would be saying no to God.”
Why authoritarians don't follow leaders — they obey them.
For those of us interested in psychology and sociology, the Trump era has been a gold mine of data and insight.
I used to think I understood authoritarianism.
“I prefer a strong leader,” I would imagine the authoritarian thinking/feeling. “I want someone who is strong on crime and national security.”
I know now that this is shallow— and therefor wrong. It misses the root.
Trump is not the result of the authoritarian “preferring” or “wanting” anyone or anything. Trump is not, in this regard, a conscious choice. He isn’t a choice at all.
Authoritarians are simply hardwired to obey a tyrant. And they will do so, regardless of philosophy — unless a greater tyrant comes along.
An interesting case study in this phenomenon is Alex Jones. Jones shouted and emoted for years warning of federal tyranny. But the second an actual tyrant came along, Jones heartily supported him.
His followers followed.
Until Jones didn’t. Jones broke with Trump in April, 2026.
Likely Jones followers will follow Jones(until they revert).
What happened?
Trump’s Iran policy displayed his weakness. As did the political rebuffing he received as a result of the violence committed under his ICE policy.
To be clear, Trump’s weakness was not in the violence he illegally waged against Iran or against American citizens and immigrants. The weakness the authoritarians perceived was in his inability or unwillingness to follow through with an iron fist.
A psychopath like Jones perceives this weakness, and claims it as an opportunity to project his own strength, attacking the tyrant.
Again, the philosophy of either man is irrelevant. What is important to the authoritarian follower is the perception of strength, masculinity, brutality, and the willingness to wage (or threaten) violence.
Not incidentally we saw some of this in play in the soft support, by authoritarians, of Bernie Sanders (who I supported and continue to support). Sanders egalitarian politics dulled his appeal to authoritarians. But it was easy to find hard-right conservatives who would say, “I like old Bernie. He’s okay.”
Many leftists assumed that this was evidence that Sanders policies were popular across the political spectrum. While there may be instances of this to be found here and there, the overwhelming basis for this approval was much simpler: Sanders booming voice, and frequently angry demeanor.
As the oft-cited Mehrabian rule suggests, 60% of someone’s reaction to your communication is determined by how you look, 35% to how you speak, and only 5% to what you say.
If you doubt this — or that authoritarians are hardwired to obey, and ignore all evidence contradictory to their own ethics, interests, or goals — simply observe Trump’s many lies, contradictory statements, and outright betrayal of his followers.
None of it matters. Because he barks awful things and threatens violence. He projects domination. They submit. They expect everyone else to submit.
For as long as humanity and science survive, this era and phenomenon will be studied, dissected.
For what it is worth, above are my observations — and below are my recommendations:
Public education is key, and should be undertaken on an emergency basis. Psychopathic leaders — buttressed by the obedient violence of authoritarian followers— rule much of the planet today (Roughly 70% of Earth’s population live under dictatorship). We teeter on the edge of complete global authoritarian rule.
1-4% of the population are psychopaths. Charming, persuasive, manipulative, and entirely without conscience, they excel at climbing the ladders of power. Among the most common positions they occupy: politician, pundit, clergy, CEO. They excel at these positions because they are ruthless — and because authoritarians follow them, giving them power.
Authoritarians themselves are roughly 35% of the population, though this fluctuates by nation and culture. And otherwise “normal” people can become authoritarians under the right (or rather, wrong) circumstances. If a psychopathic leader convinces a population that they are under attack, incidence of authoritarianism may exceed 50%. This is what has now occurred in Israel.
This is the death of democracy, freedom, and the rule of law.
The public must be made aware of these facts. They must be encouraged to unite against authoritarians, and to resist attempts initiated by psychopaths and psychopathic alliances to divide their opposition through inflammatory algorithms — as we have seen in the alliances of Trump, Musk, and Putin.
Unity of opposition removed Viktor Orbán in Hungary.
Beyond this, looking to the future, psychopaths, malignant narcissists, and other anti-social personalities must be diagnosed as early as possible and their damage to society avoided at the outset. Recent studies show that psychopathic traits can often be identified as early as three years old. Children should be screened, just as they are screened for disease and treated.
Psychopaths can play constructive roles in society. They excel at policing (but must be carefully monitored). Oddly, they also make excellent surgeons — because, incredibly, their lack of empathy for the patient means that their hands do not shake.
Whether you would want to undergo surgery by a diagnosed psychopath is another matter altogether. Nonetheless, they must be diverted away from some of their other preferred pursuits — like wielding power over congregations and nations.