“Businessman” is the label most readily applied to US President-elect Donald Trump, and analyses of his upcoming term often centre on this identity. But is Trump still a businessman at heart?
Trump’s businessman persona
Trump continues to present himself to the public as an atypical politician. He has kept up with disrupting Washington’s bureaucracy — for instance, by appointing Tesla founder Elon Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency — and has even offered trade deals to other countries before taking office. He appears to be leveraging his business acumen in governing and advancing American interests.
However, analysing him based solely on the label of a businessman is limiting — he may even have deliberately crafted the businessman image himself. This atypical political persona allows him to operate outside the constraints of traditional political rules, enabling him to better pursue his own agenda. After all, Trump will be the US president; his actions, especially his “America First” stance, indicate that he represents and prioritises US national interests.
Before Trump, there was Reagan
Ronald Reagan serves as a historical reference for such an atypical president. As a former Hollywood actor, Reagan’s political career demonstrated that a political leader’s professional background did not determine their policy direction or achievements. Reagan not only successfully assumed the presidency, he also initiated the far-reaching “Reagan Revolution”. Together with the UK’s Margaret Thatcher, he ushered in a new era of neoliberalism.
The Trump phenomenon now signifies more than the trajectory of a single political figure; it marks a potential turning point for the post-Cold War liberal international order led by the US.
Part of Reagan’s success lay in his ability to leverage his communication and oratory abilities as an actor to his political advantage. Even more crucially, however, his policies resonated greatly with US objectives during the Cold War period. He advocated for “small government, big freedom” economic policies, and stimulated economic recovery through massive tax cuts and deregulation. His tough foreign policy stance against the Soviet Union also reinforced America’s global leadership position.
Hence, rather than discussing what identity best suits the presidential role, it is more worthwhile to consider why an individual with certain personality traits can become US president. Reagan’s success demonstrates that the key to political leadership lies not in one’s professional background, but in aligning with the demands of the times. His free-market economic reforms and assertive foreign policies resonated with the American public’s desire for revival and victory during the Cold War era.
In comparison, Trump’s rise occurred against the backdrop of a retreat from globalisation and the rise of nationalism. Trump’s populist “America First” rhetoric therefore appealed to these sentiments.
The Trump phenomenon
Trump’s ascent is the political response of US society to this shift in America’s global role. In his first term, Trump attempted to address political issues with a business mindset, simplifying foreign policy to transactional negotiations. While he was often criticised for his non-traditional approach, perhaps it is precisely such unconventionality that can break the constraints of orthodox political thinking and safeguard US interests in a new world order.
In the context of an “end of history” approach, successive US presidents have shouldered a global mission to promote universal values. However, as seen from US actions in regions from Central Asia to the Middle East and North Africa, their mission has been plagued with problems rooted in hubris.
To analyse and predict Trump’s behaviour and policy orientations in his second term, one must not simply dwell on his business background, but consider the broader context — a shift in America’s global role.
While Trump’s first term may have retained a businessman’s approach, his second term promises to transcend that simple label. The Trump phenomenon now signifies more than the trajectory of a single political figure; it marks a potential turning point for the post-Cold War liberal international order led by the US. The domestic political landscape in the US is undergoing reconstruction, and global governance models and relations between major powers are seeking new paradigms.
To analyse and predict Trump’s behaviour and policy orientations in his second term, one must not simply dwell on his business background, but consider the broader context — a shift in America’s global role. As demonstrated during the Reagan era, the emergence of political leaders is often a response to contemporary issues, while their success is contingent on meeting the demands of the times.
Therefore, Trump’s political trajectory aptly reflects US society’s political response to America’s changing global role. Such an understanding could provide more insightful guidance for grasping the direction of US politics and predicting potential policy orientations during Trump’s second term in office.
This article was first published in Lianhe Zaobao as “特朗普还是个商人吗？”.
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