Opinion: The dangers of idolizing politicians

America is no stranger to political scandals. The XYZ Affair, Watergate, and the Lewinsky Scandal are a few prominent examples. A large part of the reason for these scandals is the way that politicians present themselves and how they interact with the American people.

Some modern day political icons are Donald Trump and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also known as AOC. Both of them are incredibly charismatic and have a loyal following, despite their very different political beliefs and strategies. Yet, they both exemplify one of the problems in America: the idolization of politicians.

I do acknowledge that both Trump and AOC have plenty of outspoken critics, but it’s important to note that these critics have little effect on their loyal fanbases. That’s where the danger comes in. If a politician’s flaws are not recognized — and every politician has them, they’re people and they’re not perfect — they become all-powerful and able to do no wrong, which is extremely dangerous. 

Power has a funny tendency to get into people’s heads and dramatically change the way they interact with people. Power makes you less empathetic to others’ situations, less compassionate, and less willing to maintain close interpersonal relationships. Many of these qualities make for a great politician, but the power that comes with the job can change their character. Their perception of the average American’s situation gets warped. If they care less about the people around them they are more likely to engage in behaviors that harm their constituents more than it benefits them. 

Money is another thing that can change people, especially politicians. It’s no secret that money and politics are tightly intertwined. Congress members aren’t technically allowed to accept gifts from lobbyists, but there are many exceptions. Some of these exceptions include gifts from relatives (even if they work for a lobbying group) or other members of Congress, as well as campaign contributions. Additionally, political support can be invaluable and is not subject to regulation.

That’s not to say that all politicians take questionably legal bribes. However, I don’t believe that there is such a thing as an honest politician.

This sounds like a bad thing, but there are some benefits.

Politicians know a lot of the behind the scenes happenings in this country, like classified national security information. The everyday American does not need to know the ins and out of national security, and broadcasting those secrets would leave us vulnerable. However, this doesn’t excuse the transparency problem that is rampant in our government. 

Politicians tell half-truths; it’s in their job description and it’s how they get elected. There is no fixing that unless the American political system gets a dramatic overhaul, which is not likely to happen anytime soon. The problem, then, with these half-truths is that they often snowball into lies and scandals.

Many, if not most, politicians are able to recover from such scandals once the public moves onto the next sensational headline. This helps further the narrative that politicians don’t need to worry about being held accountable. And this narrative isn’t limited to scandals; CU Boulder researchers have found that voters don’t usually punish their representatives for not voting according to their views by voting for someone else in the next election.

The lack of accountability for such scandals make politicians more comfortable with engaging in unsavory behaviors. The more things that they get away with, the more comfortable they are breaking their promises to their constituents. 

This gets even worse when a politician is put on a pedestal. The idolization creates a perception that they can do no wrong, giving them the authority to do whatever they want because they know they have a loyal fanbase who will continue to support them and ignore facts and news coverage.

This can be seen with Trump, who has managed to get impeached twice, but has lost virtually none of his loyal followers because of it. It is also doubtful that the Senate will convict him because there are too many Republican Senators that are afraid of alienating his fanbase and risking their seats. 

This shows how the idolization of politicians is dangerous, firstly, because it allows people to maintain power when they shouldn’t and, secondly, because it further polarizes Americans and leads to more disbelief in facts and science. America has a huge misinformation problem, which is going to and already has cost lives—just look at anti-vaxxers or coronavirus deniers. 

Politicians are constantly criticized, but it doesn’t mean anything when the critics have no impact. Holding politicians accountable for their actions is how the American people can force Congress to do their jobs. Politicians are supposed to serve the public, not the other way around.

Ella Olson is an opinion writer at the Statesman. She’s originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota and enjoys reading, debate, and hammocking.

ella.olson@usu.edu