Power in Trump's America

Alan Cai

December 20, 2024

Trump is not a typical president-elect. Most non-incumbent president-elects throughout US history spend their time interviewing cabinet picks, crafting an agenda for their administration, and perhaps going on a victory lap around the country. In December, Trump is already calling the shots in Washington. This morning, Trump demanded a raise in the debt ceiling to accompany any government spending bill that would pass through Congress. Many congressional Republicans, prodded by Trump and spurred by his cronies Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, expressed willingness to shut down the government to meet their demands.

Trump’s fingers are already all over Washington’s pie as he continues controlling his party — and the country — from his Palm Beach estate. Jeff Bezos is the latest among a string of business leaders, politicians, world leaders, and influential figures to visit Mar-a-Lago in an attempt to curry favor with the celebrity-turned-politician. He was spotted at Mar-a-Lago earlier this week, reportedly in an effort to deepen relationships with Trump. Like fellow tech billionaires Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, Bezos has a vested interest in advantageous associations with the incoming administration. Specifically, Bezos’s tech company Amazon, and his space company Blue Origin would likely be affected by the administration’s tariffs and potentially benefit from government contracts. Trump himself observed during a media appearance at Mar-a-Lago that “everyone wants to be [his] friend.”

Trump’s new brand of politics — valuing personal relations over established methods of contact and power trips over policy-based decisions — threatens the nation's foundations. While lobbyists and special interest groups frequently receive fire from candidates from both major parties, they are, for lack of a better system, necessary. A republic functions because its leaders can listen to and represent ideas from the people. However, in large republics such as the United States, it’s impossible to discern the pulse of the people if millions of ideas and priorities bounce back and forth from a million mouths. That’s where money can come in because while anyone can spew any idea and people will back it, the only reasonable way to measure the amount of support an idea has is from its financial backing. It’s absolutely a valid concern that this emphasis on money gives excess power to the wealthy and well-connected. However, at least there is an objective way for government decisions to be influenced. Lobbyists and special interest groups allow for money to fairly and appropriately reach campaign finance accounts and thus turn the cogs of our democracy. Trump’s preference for building his power and making sure that he himself is the ultimate kingmaker is dangerous for our republic for the precise reason that it decreases the transparency and access to his decision-making. In Trump’s world, money isn’t enough to influence policy, leaders must personally kowtow to his feet and pay tribute to at Mar-a-Lago to get their voice heard. At the end of the day, money is much more ethical than a single man running the government.