Top historian spots giant weakness behind Trump's phony strongman act

President Donald Trump returns to the White House, after Israel and the U.S. launched strikes on Iran, in Washington, D.C., March 1, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard

An award-winning historian states that President Donald Trump's manner of acting like a strongman actually masks a basic weakness, on the grounds that the president's political influence is decreasing while his billionaire allies continue to benefit from his administration.

Timothy Snyder told Kai Wright, the host of The Guardian's Stateside podcast, on Tuesday, "I think Trump is an essentially weak character."

The On Tyranny writer rejected the idea that Trump's unpredictable behavior indicates strength; on the contrary, he described the president as one who depends on a politically favorable atmosphere and is becoming more inclined to the view that he can no longer keep his Republican supporters satisfied.

Snyder stated, when talking about the midterm elections, that "the other level of desperation is that Trump doesn't help anymore," and added, "His presence doesn't help."

Snyder claimed that the campaign visits which Trump has made have become less concerned with helping struggling candidates to win their seats and more about proving to his supporters that he is still relevant.

He said, "Nobody actually wants him around on the Republican side, but of course they can't stop him from showing up."

The historian also mentioned Trump's television ads, noting that Wright said they were financed with taxpayer money and that Snyder described their appeal as based on a call for personal devotion rather than confidence.

Snyder said the beat of the ad was like "Love me, love me, love me, love me."

Snyder points out that the president's apparent strength is particularly misleading since wealthy people have influence working behind the scenes.

He referred to Trump as "the revolving door for more powerful men than he to try to seek wealth very quickly," mentioning the tech billionaires that he called "broligarchs."

Snyder said, "They never respected him," and described Trump as "just kind of a fool who will be satisfied with what from their point of view is a very small amount of money."

He believed that those wealthy allies would stay with Trump because they would still have the opportunity to gain access to the White House and thus be able to continue to benefit, even if Trump's political position declined.

He also cautions that the Republicans' loyalty to Trump is based on a contradiction since significant officials have publicly accepted someone whom he considers to be becoming weaker.

Snyder stated that the spectacle might one day change from "a kind of religious melodrama" to "slapstick comedy".

The historian, who has for a long time cautioned against authoritarianism in American politics, has said that one of Trump's weaknesses is his fear of embarrassment.

Snyder said, "He's afraid of losing. He's terrified of being humiliated," on the grounds that personal anxieties can account for actions which conventional political analysis cannot.

However, Snyder warned that Trump's weakness by itself would not ensure substantial change; he advised the Democrats, should they gain control of Congress in November, to look into cases of corruption and to push for reforms which would limit the influence of money in politics.

He said, "We're in front of a historical chance," adding, "I worry most about people not taking that chance."

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