The Dangers of a Charismatic Leader

As a way of introduction, we will deal with charismatic leaders (CL) here, not the benevolent or tyrannical ones, just CL. In countries with a history of democracy, even benevolent CL can become much less so as time goes along, given human nature, one should not tempt fate. And as the saying goes, power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Even during the presidency of Franklyn Delano Roosevelt, with four successive administrations under his belt, and remarkably navigated the country through Great Depression and WWII, a marker was set down at no more than two terms, not to tempt fate again, this was put into law after his death. When a CL can stay in power he will. As a CL’s skilled in the art of persuasion, having mastered the art of adoration, others will naturally flock to him and pledge to him their unwavering loyalty, and if follows that disloyal people to such an appealing, magnetic and gifted person may not be tolerated by the masses. Charisma is a gift, and people know when they are in the presence of such a person, who is a master communicator, salesman and can make the sales as being good for almost everyone (at least at the beginning). Human nature, being as it, can convince people that their "Dear Leader" can turn dross into gold, con people into believing that what is good for the CL is good for them as well and overcome cognitive dissidence to impose his will on others.

Charismatic Leaders and their followers can be from any walk of life, from: world politics, religious orders and cults, the world of business, and nationalism (domestic populism) political world. The loyalty increases the more people are in the presence of a CL. He may tell his followers that he is both their salvation and retribution for the injustices in their life, which he has mastered over the many years. To gain new adherents he must find a new receptive audience, then show them the wonders he can work. Lastly, he should close the deal. Because his message may often be too good to be true, those drawn in to listen to his pitch are most often not exactly critical thinkers. And a message like “Your plight in life is not due to your deficiencies, but due to others who have taken what you justly deserve in life.” He may promote himself as a self proclaimed genius in many endeavors in his life and drop a few well-known names that attest to his greatness. He may have made lots of money through his prior endeavors, but he usually inflates their value and has squandered his ill-gotten gains on bad business deals, losing lawsuits, bad investments, or pal around worse friends, who tell him that he is great and the chosen one. If you are thinking of the man who would fit this description, hold on until you read this article in its entirety.? ??

The Followers

CLs often emerge during widespread social, political, or economic unrest, instability, fear of “others” or during transitionary periods. He offers simple solutions when knowledgeable people don’t take anything at face value. Those with low IQ’s, poorly educated and are easy marks to fool and separated from their money. They are toxic as the lies they passed along to only expand the network of ignorance. However, a CL can set in motion a row of dominos, invent problem, stage inflammatory events, or give credence to rumor that can lead to violence, or tilt the scalers of an election with lies. A tempest in a teapot will do nicely. Like Haitians stealing and barbequing neighbors cats, dogs, or Big Foot will do just fine.

They will even take some settled problem or back burner issue and turn it into a cause. The Civil War, slavery, and racism, which were back burner issues. the first two issues that happened 180 years ago at the end of the Confederacy and all that it symbolizes, the Confederate Battle Flag, statues to commemorate the Confederate Generals, and the names of the US Army facilities and forts, and most inflammatory a stolen election made up out of whole cloth. This eventually led to the opening of old wounds and conspiracies that on January 6, 2021, the US Capital insurrection took place as all this was moved to the front burner by those who revved up by their backers to divide the country. Not far behind this was the defeat of the Nazis 80 years ago, and reawakened in Charlottesville, N.C. in a Neo-Nazi rally. Where there several hundred people marched with swat-stickers, Nazi paraphernalia, and a confederate flags to show the KKK and rednecks could still make trouble.? ?

The pattern is consistent in world politics, religion and religious cults, nationalism (domestic politics. CLs thrive on exploiting the fears and frustrations of their followers, leading them to act against their own interests in pursuit of a vision that may never truly benefit them. Yet these racists were easily turned their devoted followers of the far-right politicians, many of whom who were summarily fired from their jobs when they wee scene on TV when they attempted to return to work as usual.

1, World Politics: The Combustible Reaction CL with Toxic Followers

Converting a country from a democracy to a totalitarian regime CLs work is harder to undo than converting it back to a democracy. The rise of tyrants and dictators in waiting from the 1930’s to today offer classic examples of how charismatic leaders prey upon the anxieties of being disenfranchised to win and consolidate power.

• Benito Mussolini: Italy, after World War I, was a nation in disarray. Economic instability, high unemployment, and disillusionment with democratic governance paved the way for Mussolini’s rising to power under a fascist banner. He appealed to nationalistic pride, presenting himself as the savior of a nation that had been "betrayed" by weak politicians and exploited by external powers. He captured the imagination of poorly educated Italians who felt alienated by political elites and disconnected from Italy’s economic successes. They bought into his narrative that their struggles resulted from global forces and internal weakness. Mussolini created a cult of personality through public spectacles, propaganda, and the repression of dissent, ensuring that his followers would see him as a quasi-divine figure. Unfortunately for him, his inept military was saved by a more powerful and ally his authorian brother in arms, Hitler.
• Adolf Hitler: The conditions in post-World War I Germany were even more severe. The Treaty of Versailles, economic depression, hyperinflation, and political chaos created a perfect storm for Hitler’s rise. He harnessed the grievances of the poorly educated, disenfranchised, and nationalist-leaning Germans who felt humiliated by the Allied powers. Hitler masterfully used propaganda, blaming Jews, communists, and intellectual elites for Germany's downfall. He promised to restore the German nation to its former glory, positioning himself as the only leader capable of achieving this vision. He idealized the strong, fair haired Nordic individual, as he was the physical antithesis of this himself, which amazingly never seemed to register in Germany. Although on paper, the German democracy rivaled others, with a court and legal system which worked on paper, until they didn’t. Many Germans of that day, they lacked will, education and critical thinking skills to enforce the rule of law and hold those accountable for its functioning. Hitler’s charisma and vision for the German people was seductive. It provided the old scapegoats and new targets for their hardships to blame for their economic and social ills. Even today, in our great democracy, many have fallen back on some of same scapegoats, and those who deny the holocaust even happened, to go with the flat Earthers, and as new group of people we know as QAnon, who believe as gospel that Hilary eats babies for lunch. ??

In both cases, these leaders came to power not simply because of their charisma but because they exploited widespread dissatisfaction and a majority of the country who provided a willing powerbase for their messages that the others are to blame for their poor education, lack of drive and resourcefulness, et al, to blame for their hopefulness and plight, and the rest of the populace who knew better stayed quite.

2. The Appeal of Religious Cult Leaders

Religious cult leaders are perhaps the most extreme examples of charismatic figures who prey on the vulnerable and poorly informed. By presenting themselves as prophets or divine beings, these leaders can persuade their followers to abandon rationality, personal responsibility, and even self-preservation.

• Jim Jones and the People's Temple: In the 1960s and 1970s, Jones attracted thousands of followers by promising racial equality, social justice, and spiritual salvation. Many of his followers were poorly educated, economically disadvantaged, and socially marginalized. Jones was convinced their struggles were not due to their actions but to broader society, which had failed them. Over time, Jones became more authoritarian, demanding absolute loyalty and fostering a belief that only he could protect his followers from the evils of the world. This culminated in the Jonestown massacre in 1978, where over 900 of his followers committed mass suicide at his command, believing that this ultimate sacrifice was necessary to avoid persecution by external forces. Jones’s followers had been so deeply conditioned to believe in his divine authority, that they willingly died for him despite the obvious dangers of his leadership. His follower would be and role models include Viktor Orban, Kim Jung Un.
• David Koresh and the Branch Davidians: Another chilling example of a false prophet. Koresh claimed to be the “final prophet” of God, and through his charismatic sermons and apocalyptic teachings, he convinced his followers to isolate themselves from society and follow him without question. Many of his followers were poorly educated and who sought meaning and purpose in a world that had failed them. They believed he was divinely ordained to lead them through the end times. The tragic end of this cult in Waco, Texas, in 1993, where 70+ members of the church died in a standoff with the ATF, highlights how deeply people can be manipulated by a charismatic leader who preys due to their vulnerabilities.
• Marshall Applewhite and the Gates of Heaven. We can’t leave this section without mentioning this deranged lunatic who founded a mission to beam up his scores of followers to the UFO coming to save them; but not before the prepared themselves by poisoning themselves to purge the evils in their Earthly bodies. ????

3. The Business World: Enron and Bernie Madoff

Charismatic leaders can also rise in the business world, attracting followers who believe in their vision of financial success but who are often poorly informed or too trusting.

• Enron: The collapse of Enron in 2001 is an example of how charismatic leadership can lead to disastrous consequences for poorly informed followers. Under the leadership of Jeffrey Skilling and Kenneth Lay, Enron presented itself as an innovative energy company, using aggressive accounting practices to inflate its profits and hide its debt. Skilling was a charismatic figure who strong armed their auditors to endorse their bookkeeping to keep their account, their employees to invest their earning in the company’s stock and put all their eggs in the same bucket, and the regulators that Enron energy trading practices was a better model than being in the energy producing that they started out as. Interestingly, when a really good accountant figured out how the maze of transactions worked like a three-card monte magic act, they hired them away at double their existing salary. Many employees invested their life savings in Enron stock, believing the CEO’s Skilling’s promises of untold wealth. When the company collapsed due to fraud and a Ponzi-like scheme, several thousand employees lost everything because they placed their blind trust in their very own charismatic leader they trusted till the end.
• Bernie Madoff: Bernie Madoff’s was another version of a Ponzi scheme, where investment losses were covered up by new money coming in, until the well went dry. Investors were defrauded of billions of dollars, as another CL did his stuff. Madoff’s reputation as a successful financier allowed him to prey on poorly informed or overly trusting investors who believed in his unrealistic promises of steady, high returns, even though it defied the laws of investment gravity. Many of these investors were not financially savvy, making them easy targets for Madoff’s deceit. Despite the obvious red flags, they with ??so many of the ultra-rich and much more savvy investors in with Bernie how could they miss boarding this boat. When it came to light in 2008, the scale of his fraud revealed how deeply his followers had been manipulated by his charm and authority. Not only did his empire fail, his son committed suicide, his wife divorced him and he passed away in prison. Kay died apparently as a suicide, while Skilling went to prison, for far lighter a sentence he deserved.
• Jeffrey Epstein was seen as an acolyte of Madoff and involved in similar financial schemes, defrauding his investors and clients, although he wore an MIT with complicated equations on it, although he never graduated this the prestigious school. But had with people like Prince Andrew, and the elite of society vouching for him. His financial scams were far less newsworthy than his repulsive side hustle in trafficking and sexually abusing under aged girls. He committed suicide (or was murdered) in jail. ?

4. Nationalism (Domestic Populism)

In modern politics, populist leaders worldwide have risen to power by appealing to poorly educated and uninformed voters who feel left behind by globalization, technological change, and shifting demographics.

• Viktor Orbán: In Hungary, Viktor Orbán has consolidated power by (tell me if I said this before) appealed to poorly educated, disenfranchised, and nationalist Hungarians, who felt left behind by the poverty-stricken immigrants from Syria, and many other places who wanted a new life. Orbán’s anti-immigrant rhetoric, combined with his promises to protect Hungary’s cultural identity, resonates deeply with voters who fear change and have limited access to diverse sources of information. He has positioned himself as the defender of Hungarian sovereignty, using populist rhetoric to blame foreign elites and migrants for the country’s economic difficulties. By controlling the media and limiting access to opposing viewpoints, Orbán has fostered an environment where his followers see him as the only viable protector of their interests, even as he undermines democratic institutions.
• Donald Trump: is Orbán's biggest supporter. Trump’s rise to political prominence can be attributed in large part once again to his appeal to the disenfranchised, poorly educated, and economically struggling Americans who felt alienated by political elites. These are the people who cannot come up with $400 for an emergency. Trump said any election he does not win must be rigged and there will be blood in the streets the streets if his victory is not accepted. that fact is not accepted. This has been a constant refrain, and either I win or the other party will lose if it is a fair election. He as simple answers for complex problems, like blaming non-white immigrants, foreign powers and the media for the country's economic and social ills and “Make America Great Again (MAGA) slogan. He presented himself as strongman echoing the themes of the birthright of White Christian Nationalists, who were here first (but there were those pesky natives, the Indians who were here before Columbus, but they don’t really matter or have a large enough vote to care about). His MAGA crew are racially superiority to all other groups anyhow, or as the Third Reich put it "Uber Allas" (or we are above everything). Despite policies that often are diametrically opposed to the economic interests of his base (such as tax cuts favoring the wealthy), his followers remained fiercely loyal because he speaks directly to their sense of grievance and gave them an external enemy to blame for their hardships, which is most always a winning argument. Although the specifics of any plan to do this are glaringly absent, or just trust me.

Conclusion: A Cycle of Manipulation

As we have seen in every sphere and endeavor, there are charismatic leaders who lust for power, financial riches, a party, or even better a country to rule over, by any means necessary. The pattern of CLs is to prey on the poorly educated and uninformed is not new phenomena, nor is it limited to any one walk of life. Given our political climate with an election around the corner you may think of the people we covered and see that the confidence game is not so unique. It’s the age-old playbook, with a few new wrinkles, the names of the problems to offer simple solutions for, the nationalities, races and religions to be identified as the “others” The CL will offer simple explanations for complex problems, and us versus them solution. And of course, the only constant, that only he can fix things. He knows the rules and has the strength and the dedication to win and deliver victory to his loyal followers. They have the right to what is theirs and the others will be sent back to wherever they came from.

This cycle is particularly dangerous because once we turn the page to an authoritarian regime it will not be reversed without a reign of terror. Whether it is economic ruin, loss of freedom, or even loss of life, the sacrifices that followers make in the name of their leader rarely result in the promised salvation. Yet, as long as uncertainty, fear, and perceived disenfranchisement persist, so will the appeal of these charismatic figures who exploit those least prepared to resist their influence.

As we noted, the same situation arises in world politics, religious cults, the world business, as well as nationalism (domestic popularism). So we can see that Mr. Trump is not unique all of these iconoclasts have borrowed ideas from other, mostly with bad results. Follow the wrong leader in your company takeover and you will be fired and are going to find getting a new job very difficult to get. Follow a false profit in a foreign country and you will be likely not to be short. Follow the wrong religious order or cult and you are a heretic, or worse, the aliens don't want you on their flying saucer. ??

On a personal note, I had a great awakening experience quite a while back. I was doing M&A work for a multi-Billion $ conglomerate. The CEO never wanted to turn down a deal, before we had good reason to do so. One day this is fellow with an odd looking attire, but a great simile and personality came into my office with a deal just too good to ignore arrived. He had raised millions upon millions of dollar's to launch a Radio Caroline II sailing in international waters around Great Brittan and was in in technical violation of the BBC commercial broadcasting rights. The representative only wanted $400K to finish the funding for a very attractive equity position. He had signed letters of commitment from some of the largest corporations in the US, which he shared with me. It looked too good to be true. When I asked what was his previous experience in financing deals. He said he was the personal advisor to the King of Saudi Arabia. A reference I could not easily validate. Fortunately, in the next office was Ted, our x-FBI agent in charge of security. I called him in to bounce this off him. As soon as their eye met it to was like a great grizzle bear who came upon a very tasty deer, he was ready to have for diner. The crook saw the cop, and the cop saw the crook, and it was a scene to behold. In a few days I had the rap sheet for the number 2 con man his mug shots from the La Tuna State Penitentiary in Texas along with a thank-you-gram to cover his tracks. A case history and lesson, never to be forgotten. ????????????????

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