Sam Harris is a hero of mine. I owe him for changing the way I view the world. I would not believe much of what I do today without the influence of Sam’s work. This is not because Harris has convinced me to think what he thinks, but because without Sam Harris, I wouldn’t know how to think. Before discovering The Waking Up Podcast, I understood the basic principles of fact based reasoning, rationality, logic, and the scientific method, but I did not understand just what kind of power those ideas have. Not only was Sam able to convince me immediately on some issues of which I had previously been staunchly opposed, he was able to convince me that his opinions were not simply his own, but as representative of reality as humanly possible. Sam taught me to be hesitant in speaking on any topic which I am not knowledgeable. He taught me to ignore emotions and personal biases when conducting a rational argument. So, I owe Sam Harris an explanation on why he’s wrong about Donald Trump.

Sam has spoken about the US election on various different shows, including his own. Each time, Sam has expressed his overwhelming fear of a Trump presidency. These fears are mostly based on Trump’s status as an anti-establishment candidate and the perceived lack of knowledge about what a Trump presidency might look like. Sam has repeatedly asserted that Donald Trump is not a smart individual, and that this fact should be evident to anyone who is. Sam believes that Donald Trump’s narcissism renders him incapable of empathy, and therefore, proper ability to lead. Sam makes it clear that he believes Hillary Clinton is the lesser of two evils and that his anti-Trump stance is not based out of fervent support for Clinton. He claims to see the same flaws that Trump supporters see in Clinton, but that they don’t outweigh the risks of Trump leadership. I think Sam is wrong about nearly all of this, not because he hasn’t spent the time thinking about it, but because he is wrong in his basic analysis of Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and the state of American politics.

“Those of you who are mystified that I can forgive Clinton her obvious lying and other indiscretions, just don’t understand what a dangerous imbecile I think Trump is. I really think he is a child in a man’s body. He is a malignantly selfish, ignorant, and petty person—and a tyrant in the making, in so far as our system can accommodate a tyrant. If you’re supporting the guy because he’ll ‘shake things up,’ I think you’re just playing a game of chicken with human history, and there’s no one in the other car.” – Sam Harris, The Waking Up Podcast #45

Sam is right that the US election is a game of chicken. America is a $400,000 Ford GT, screaming down the highway in the oncoming lane. Clinton is loving the ride. She wants to hold the wheel with her knees, put on her seizure glasses, turn up the music, roll down the window, and press the pedal to the floor. It’s unclear whether the DNC realizes it’s headed straight for the grill of an eighteen wheeler, but Trump does. He wants to slam the brakes, yank the wheel, and the get the hell off the highway. How can one posture about staying the course on a set of successful policies and strategies that are leading America toward a brighter future, when this outlook is simply not a reflection of reality. The Obama presidency has hardly represented an upward trend for the American people. A Gallup poll published in January indicated that only 23% of Americans feel satisfied with the direction their country is headed. Now, I highly doubt that Sam believes the United States should continue to be governed exactly the way it has been for the past several presidencies, though Sam does seem to be a part of the satisfied 23%. So the case against Donald Trump, as Sam has expressly stated, comes down to the risks. Sam believes that the potential risks associated with electing Trump are so great, he’s stated he would vote for a randomly selected US citizen over him. Sam is so convinced of the danger in a Trump presidency that it supersedes any concerns he might have with the continuing failures of a corrupt, oligarchical bureaucracy.

“Trump shows every sign of being that sort of character, where a combination of hubris and ignorance, of a sort that we have never seen, could create extraordinary economic and political chaos. There is nothing like that on Clinton’s side. Henceforth, a lesser of two evils argument makes perfect sense here.” -Sam Harris, The Waking Up Podcast #38

Trump may in fact be childish, arrogant, mean, narcissistic, unpredictable, inflammatory, but this does not necessarily negate his ability to lead a successful administration, or disqualify him from being a decent person. Could one not list all the same character traits when speaking about men like Christopher Hitchens, or Winston Churchill, or Teddy Roosevelt? And whether or not you agree with or like these men, could it not be said that they are also brave, patriotic, cunning, charismatic, vigilant, and energetic? Trump exhibits many flaws and undesirable personality traits, but there is no human candidate who is free of such flaws. Sam’s character judgments are based on a cookie cutter outline of what a presidential candidate should be. And I can’t help but think that Sam’s perfect, imaginary candidate acts an awful lot like the establishment posse of Democrats and Republicans that have driven their country into this mess. As a result of her reckless behavior and the catastrophic consequences of foreign policy decisions made by Hillary Clinton during her tenure as Secretary of State, I do not buy arguments that attempt to portray her as the less dangerous candidate. For each speculated undesirable aspect of Donald Trump’s character, there are real and scandalous examples of Hillary Clinton manifesting undesirable behavior in a way that has put American national security at risk. It is unlikely that there has ever been a more corrupt, shrewd, Machiavellian actor in US political history. Mrs. Clinton has repeatedly and transparently demonstrated her contempt for the American people and her willingness to lie without hesitation. If Sam Harris truly believes that the unknowns surrounding Donald Trump even remotely surpass the kind of risk associated with proven conspirator, perjurer, and war mongerer Hillary Clinton, Sam has not been paying attention to Trump’s campaign.

Before I go into detail about why Donald Trump himself is not dangerous, I think it’s important to outline what led to the possibility of a Trump presidency, because Sam seems painfully unaware of just how little the American people trust or respect their government. The cultural trends behind Trump’s success represent a much more reasonable cause for concern than Trump himself. The rise of Trump should not be confused for the birth of a movement, rather, Trump should be seen as an avatar and unifying cause for the people who have supported him. The specifics are still a bit unclear, but one thing is certain: there is a new “right wing,” and it means business. The continued and growing success of the Trump campaign is almost entirely owed to vocal citizens and independent journalists spreading counter-mainstream narratives online. In their quest to elect Trump, the new right has stumbled into and demonstrated the incredible power that social media and the internet can have over the course of history. Through the actions of millions of individuals, united in a collective voice of dissent across the internet, the people of the United States have taken back some control for themselves. The mainstream media can no longer dictate the public discourse. Every day the major news networks become more and more discredited and distrusted, as their hoaxes and cover ups are exposed online. Anti-establishment propaganda spreads like wildfire. Semi-organized campaigns of outcry guide political conversations across the country. Whether the rest of America knows it yet or not, the new right and the internet now dictate the terms of political discourse. As far as this group really is right of center is debatable. What is clear is that this group is right of the far-left, authoritarian, progressive establishment. In fact, the new right is built on a foundation of outrage at the left’s abandonment of basic liberal principles. Most Trump supporters are free speech fanatics, constitutional diehards and soldiers of the free market. But the new right should not be conflated with cultural conservatism and the tired, losing-with-dignity attitude of the old Republican Party, who Trumpers tend to chastise almost as harshly. The new right pays no hesitation to anti-gay or misogynistic Christian dogma, nor does the new right care who it pleases or offends. This amorphous movement can be most modestly defined by their dissatisfaction with the political establishment, and most aggressively defined as a collection of radical nationalists who want to turn back the clock on American culture. In any case, this newly found movement is not to be taken lightly from here on out, no matter who ends up in the White House. Sam would probably agree that the greatest threats to the stability of the United States do not come from other nations, but from within the homeland. I think it is very likely that failure to elect Donald Trump would lead to widespread civil unrest and untold chaos in America from an electorate who has come to realize their power.

“…it is significant that Trump never manages to utter a single extemporaneous thought that is deep, insightful, or even interesting. This reveals something about him.”

“When you hear someone speak at length on topics that are crucial to the most important enterprise they’re engaging, and all they’ve got is bluster, and bombast and banality, strewn with factual errors, it is quite irrational to believe there is a brilliant mind behind all of that, just waiting to get out. Trump’s not hiding his light behind a bushel. He’s all bushel.” – Sam Harris, The Waking Up Podcast #38

While Trump’s rise is owed to a cultural undercurrent of resentment, it is thanks to his years long campaign that this undercurrent has been able to form the revolutionary tidal wave that it’s become. Trump is unique. Not just as a politician, but as a man, he is special. It is astounding to me that Sam Harris is so arrogantly certain of Donald Trump’s stupidity. The obvious fact of Donald Trump’s billionaire real estate empire aside, it is plainly obvious to me that Trump is a genius. He’s not an Issac Newton, or a Voltaire, and he’s not a bookworm intellectual like Sam. Donald Trump’s genius comes in the way of leadership and persuasion. Trump’s ability to command and manipulate attention to his advantage is unprecedented, and should not be mistaken for mere antics. There has never been a candidate so potent in his ability to fool his enemies into doing exactly what he wants. He’s always one step ahead. Time and time again, Donald Trump has demonstrated that he is fighting on an entirely different battlefield from the other candidates. Not only has Trump built a campaign on free media coverage by exploiting a culture of political correctness, but he’s managed to move from what once seemed like outrageous rhetorical posturing, to reasonable governmental policy proposals. Through the use of his Twitter and Facebook accounts, Trump has been able to speak directly to the people, far more nimbly than one could through paid advertisement. He’s been able to gather support from the electorate like no Republican ever before, and defeat the Alinsky tactics of the left like no Republican ever has. That Sam can observe the tactical brilliance of Trump and perceive it as “bluster,” causes me to wonder if Sam is capable of thinking about Donald Trump clearly at all.

“To understand how I think about Trump, blow up a balloon without tying off the end and hold it up, then release it, and watch it fly chaotically around the room. That’s Trump’s mind. In my view, that’s what we would be doing it the country if we put him in charge. If that’s your view of shaking things up, you’re a nihilist.” -Sam Harris, The Waking Up Podcast #45

Is it reasonable or rational to believe that Donald Trump is a clueless child, bumbling his way through this whole election by blind luck, in spite of his apparent mental retardation? Is it prescient to suggest that a 21st century US presidential candidate could become a tyrant? Is Sam Harris allowing his personal distaste of Donald Trump to cloud his perception of reality? Just what exactly about Trump’s proposals is so horrible and irreversibly damaging to the United States that it warrants electing the living embodiment of a broken system? Donald Trump is not a dangerous man. I find it easy to say this because there are inherent checks on Trump’s power. Firstly, the power of the president is limited by congress and the constitution. Secondly, Trump is limited by his own narcissism, and his desire to be a good and popular American president. Thirdly, and most importantly, Trump is beholden to his own populism. Those who have raised Trump up, will not hesitate to tear him down. I am confident that if Trump sells out, or fails to deliver on his promises, that his own supporters will turn on him, and probably murder him. Trump’s populist platform informs nearly everything about his policies. From immigration, to trade, to taxes, everything is designed to appeal to the working class. For Donald Trump to do anything reckless or subversive to the national interest, especially after running on a platform of reduced international meddling, would be absolutely suicidal. The realization of this new nationalist movement has shifted the balance of power in a way that can’t be overstated. The movement that elected candidate Trump is not concerned about the presidency for the presidency’s sake, but for the sake of enacting real change and using the election as one of the only means to do so. There is not a previous presidential race in American history that Donald Trump could have won. Never has the American populace had a more transparent look into the corrupt, oligarchic, machinations United States government, and been so ready to throw a wrench in the gears.

Sam’s image of Trump as a complete imbecile has prevented him from understanding that Trump is not a self destructive lunatic with no concern for the American people. Sam seems to truly believe that Trump acts entirely extemporaneously, without ever seeking professional advice, despite the fact that Trump has stated several times that he does and will defer to the knowledge of experts in all matters. As has been repeatedly demonstrated and documented, Trump is unwilling to commit to details on subjects which he does have adequate knowledge about. Take, for example, Trump’s recent speech on immigration policy in late August. Until he delivered this ten point plan, Trump had been heavily criticized for his lack of detailed legislative proposals. Trump withheld any specifics until he had been properly debriefed on the issues and statistics, and was able to work with his people to form a set of solutions that take into account the full scope of immigration intelligence. Is this not exactly the kind of behaviour that Sam Harris expects out of a good presidential candidate?

How could a businessman with no experience of developing governemnt legislation be expected to immediately produce detailed policy documents? Why does Sam seem to think that businessman Trump, with his country and reputation on the line, would make important decisions about the fate of the nation, without proper advice? Doesn’t the fact of Donald Trump’s several wise policy suggestions, some of which Sam has commended, prove that he listens to the ideas of others? I am not of the opinion that Donald Trump’s mind is like a sputtering party balloon. I believe that Donald Trump would conduct his presidency just as he has conducted his electoral campaign: carefully, with the advice of his insiders and his ear to the people.

It must be acknowledged that Donald Trump and what he represents is not simply a change of pace, but the public’s diametric opposition to the persistence of a distrusted governmental establishment. To dismiss Trump support as an inability to see Trump’s flaws is naive. Sam Harris is unaware of just how much the American people resent their government, and how little threat Donald Trump represents in the face of growing social unrest. Sam Harris is wrong about Donald Trump.