Is Trump Becoming Mao?

Written by Frank Li

In a previous post (Will Xi Become Mao?), I succinctly asked and answered a critical question: will Xi become Mao? Highly unlikely!

In this post, I will compare President Trump with Mao. A bizarre comparison? Hear me out …

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1. Who is Mao?

Below is an excerpt from Wikipedia – Mao Zedong.

Mao Zedong[a] (December 26, 1893 – September 9, 1976), commonly known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary, poet, political theorist and founding father of the People’s Republic of China, which he ruled as the Chairman of the Communist Party of China from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976.

In short, there are two explicit versions of Mao:

1. The great one: Mao unified China by force in 1949, thanks to his brilliance in military leadership!
2. The bad one: He was a total disaster for China from 1949 to 1976, because he was clueless about governing!

In other words, Mao, like many in history, failed in the mega-transition from [military] campaigning to governing.

2. Who is Donald Trump?

Below is an excerpt from Wikipedia – Donald Trump.

Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is the 45th and current President of the United States, in office since January 20, 2017. Before entering politics, he was a businessman and television personality.

Not only did I vote for Trump in the 2016 election, I also spelled out the path for him to make history as follows:

1. American history: He could be as great as George Washington.
2. Human history: He could be as great as China’s Deng Xiaoping, the greatest peaceful transformational leader in human history.

For more, read: An Open Letter To President-Elect Donald Trump.

Unfortunately for America, President Trump is missing the opportunity. Worse yet, he looks more and more like Mao, the bad one …

3. Comparing Trump with Mao

President Trump is similar to Mao in two major aspects:

1. They both knew how to win power, solely because of their personal brilliance, in accordance with their respective times.
2. Mao failed, and Trump is failing, in the mega-transition from campaigning to governing.

Is President Trump failing? Yes!

Let’s just focus on one most easily understandable aspect: personnel – The turnover rate is so high that you see it only on a reality TV show!

Just look at the image below …

Still unconvinced? Look at the image below – Who has left the Trump administration?

For those who get it, no explanation is necessary. For those who don’t, no explanation is possible.

4. What’s wrong with President Trump?

Two big problems and simple explanations:

1. Experience: The Presidency is his first job in the public sector. Before that, he ran a family business like a king, without even a board of directors! He is failing in adapting to this new job.
2. System: Getting re-elected ad nauseam! The image below is worth more than 1,000 words. For more, read: President Trump: Governing vs. Campaigning for 2020.

5. What’s wrong with our political system?

To be fair, President Trump is not the first President insufficiently experienced prior to taking the top job of the nation, nor is he the first President trapped in “getting re-elected ad nauseam“.

It’s the political system, stupid!

President Trump has just made these systemic problems more obvious than his predecessor (Barack Obama vs. Mao Zedong), by trying to do too much and too quickly, without realizing that he is not a king!

More broadly for America, have we simply diluted monarchy from one family to several, as exemplified by the image below?

One simple suggestion to President Trump: listen to Steve Bannon on this one (see image below).

For more on what’s wrong with America and how to fix it, read my last book: American Democracy.

6. Closing

I wish the best for President Trump, although he looks, day by day, more and more like the disastrous Mao in governing …

If you think President Trump is doing a good job, your standard is too low – It takes far more than whatever he has been doing to truly “Make America Great Againâ€. Two informative readings:

1. President Trump in the Real World of Three New Kingdoms.
2. Make America Great Again, Really?

Now, please sit back and enjoy the video below – Mucci is not as bad as you think!