President Donald Trump met recently with Russian president Vladimir Putin and with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an attempt to negotiate a settlement to the Russia-Ukraine war. The three leaders are all charismatic figures who know how to use their appeal to mobilize public opinion, said Richard Tempest, a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign professor of Slavic languages and literatures and an expert on Putin and charismatic politics. Tempest is teaching a fall Osher Lifelong Learning Institute course on "Charismatic Leadership in the Twenty-First Century," in which he will discuss Trump, Putin, Zelenskyy and others. He talked with News Bureau arts and humanities editor Jodi Heckel.
What are the characteristics of charismatic leaders and why are people attracted to them?
We live in a very technological century, and the West has very structured and regulated societies with lives circumscribed by all kinds of bureaucratic restraints. What charismatic leaders can do is promise a magical solution to the complexities and challenges of daily life. Napolean, who was the first great charismatic leader in modern history, said a leader is a dealer in hope. They are a screen onto which hopes for a better future are projected. These political figures have that bit of magic dust sprinkled on top of them. They make politics more relatable, both in good ways and bad ways. There's always a constituency for magical figures, particularly when times are difficult or disorienting.
Donald Trump is a very controversial figure who splits the American body politic in half. For the people in favor of him, he gives hope. At the same time, even many who dislike him intensely find him fascinating to watch.
You describe Putin as a cold charismatic and Trump as a hot charismatic. What does that mean in terms of how they relate to one another?
There is a level of competition - trying to capture the public's attention and come out on top in terms of this specific popularity contest. In a Truth Social post, Trump published a picture of himself poking Putin in the chest and towering over him, emphasizing his toughness and his superiority in a purely masculine kind of way.
They recognize in each other particular qualities that appeal to their respective constituencies. Trump has the ability to mobilize public opinion, at least the opinion of his followers, and he knows how to use his charismatic appeal. He's popular in Russia. He's a political type they recognize - larger than life, hypermasculine, a tough guy figure. Putin is the better informed, more thoughtful figure. Trump is intuitive, artistic and headstrong. Both dislike advice that goes against their assumptions and core beliefs about themselves and the world.
What is your impression of the outcome of the meeting between Trump and Putin and how each of them talked about it?
If you don't have a basic meeting of the minds on the issues that will be discussed prior to a presidential summit, then nothing will come of it. The only way to judge it is as a public relations exercise. The Russians are trying to spin it as a great success. For Putin, the meeting was a gift given for free by the United States to the Russian Federation. Normally, gaining access to the American president is an honor and privilege. Yet there was no pressing reason to give Putin that kind of face time with Donald Trump. That said, Trump demonstrated he wasn't going to be a patsy and concede to Putin and the demands Putin has been making.
Trump is a very interesting figure, much more complex than some people give him credit for. But he has priorities that are very different from many other American presidents. PR, branding and looking good on TV are part of it. He also has the almost forgivable illusion that if you meet in person with another head of state who is an antagonist, you can speak to them person-to-person and effect a meeting of the minds. Frankly, that is naïve. Trump believes in personal relationships and is a hands-on communicator. But countries have their essential, fundamental national interests and priorities. Even a figure as colorful and vociferous as Trump can't change that.
How do Trump and Zelenskyy relate to one another?
Zelenskyy is charismatic too. In the first two years of the war, he knew how to appeal to opinion makers in Western societies. That act is becoming a bit tired. There is not the same sense of existential danger in the West, and he recognizes this. He dressed differently in this meeting with Trump, in a suit, showing a degree of accommodation to the power of the presidency. My sense is that President Trump has become much more skeptical of Russian intentions and more aware of the reasons why it's in the interests of the U.S. to back Ukraine.
Beyond charisma, there is a certain incompatibility. Trump personalizes the conduct of his foreign policy, and he has a history with Zelenskyy that predates the Russia-Ukraine war. In the meeting at the White House where he attacked Zelenskyy, there was a lot of personal misunderstanding and animosity on the U.S. side toward Ukraine's leader. Now, my sense is that this animus has dissipated.
When Putin and Trump meet, they are representing powers that are negotiating and ostensibly looking for common ground. Zelenskyy is a petitioner, trying to cement Western support. Ukraine has specific requests; it is asking for things. That position is subordinate. That's something that Trump understands.
