In few hours, President Donald Trump will swear to an oath of office as the 47th President Of The United States (POTUS). It will be his second and final four year term in the Oval Office. Congratulations, President Trump and congratulations to all Americans.
The first time I wrote about President Trump was before the 2016 general elections when he shocked the world with an electoral college victory to become the 45th POTUS. I didn’t see it coming. The second was shortly after his assumption of office when I wrote “The lessons from America”.
Like it or not, there are usually more than enough lessons to learn from American democracy, even if you have issues with the political actors or the American electorate. Ignore those lessons and you are missing something.
I have not been a fan of President Trump. Even now, I, still, am not but anyone who cares about leadership cannot afford to ignore President Trump and his unmistakable determination to get what he wants, even in the face of public criticisms and seeming rejection.
Left to the larger population of the world, they would prefer someone else but President Trump in White House but President Trump did not seek to be World President but President of The United States. He was unmistaken about his goal. I took a lesson from that.
President Trump knows where the votes to take him to the White House are. The media (mainstream and social) has its massive effect on politics. It helps to project you and sometimes ignite controversies around your person that makes you stick in the face and mind of the public. I have always known that the votes are usually not in the media. President Trump reminded me.
If there is any advantage that sitting on the fence has, it is usually short-lived. President Trump has never pretended about his mission to lead an America for Americans and not an America that poses as the father and mother to the world. Here, I learnt to define the unmistakable identity that aligns with my aspirations.
Politics is a popularity contest but it has a caveat that we often ignore. You can be the most popular to the outside world but if you are looking for something, the popularity you seek should be well aimed. President Trump knows where the key to the White House is. He appealed to the sentiments of the holders of the key and he got it.
Unlike his first coming in 2016, President Trump got more votes from the African-Americans, Latinos, Hispanics and Asians to win both popular and electoral college votes in 2024. Here, I learnt that not all those who praise you openly like you and some who criticise you openly do so to satisfy some interests. Under cover, they will root for you.
Lastly but not exhaustively, I learnt again that leadership is tasking. As much as a leader is expected to exhibit refined social behaviour, the quest for power can, sometimes, be a ruthless contest that relegates niceties because the people you aim to lead want the job done more than a self-acclaimed social reformer who dances to all manner of music.
Americans spoke convincingly about what they want for themselves. It is about Americans. How the rest of the world feels is left for political literature for students of political-economics and history.
Congratulations, Americans. Congratulations, President Donald J. Trump, The 47th President of The United States of America.
©️Akin Oluwadare Jnr
20 January 2025
