Quote (theCrossbones @ 11 Jul 2021 20:21)
You mean he follows the most popular agendas..
what a concept in a pres.
Quote (thundercock @ 11 Jul 2021 21:58)
Why is this a bad thing?
Because it can backfire
spectacularly on issues which are new so that public opinion isn't settled yet and prone to large swings, or when there's a large disconnect between public and published opinion. Just think back to the Iraq war saga, where a manipulative press and a clueless electorate marched lockstep into an absolutely disastrous and unnecessary war.
To be fair though, my opposition to these opportunistic empty suit politicians without ideological/policy convictions is based on my experience with German politics. Merkel has always been "governing by the polls", which worked decently well most of the time, but produced absolutely
CATASTROPHIC decisions on at least three occasions. Decisions which will cost us trillions of euros over the years and which eroded social peace for decades to come.
From a democratic theory point of view, it's much safer to have a politician who clearly stands for something and who can be affirmed or kicked out of office by the voters, rather than having a political leadership which is beholden to the whims of the public or the idiosyncratic power calculus within their party.
edit:
Quote (thundercock @ 11 Jul 2021 22:57)
What is the alternative? Being ruled by a principled person who the majority of people disagree with? The ideal situation is to have a principled person that the majority agrees with but I think the most important part is to have someone that the majority agrees with.
It's extremely unlikely for a principled person representing a clear minority position to ever get into power. Likewise, the person occupying the White House will almost always be there because a majority agreed with him/her when the last election took place. If the president has fallen out of step with public opinion over the course of his term, he'll be denied reelection, plain and simple.
This post was edited by Black XistenZ on Jul 11 2021 05:58pm