Donald Trump is now officially the 45th president of the United States. In this episode, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Jon Meacham -- author of the book “Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush” -- discusses Trump’s place in history.
Which previous president was most like Trump? Which biographies did Meacham tell Trump to read? Whose presidential management style is Trump likely to emulate? Listen now to find out.
Excerpt:
3:27 – 4:31
ROBERT SAMUEL (HOST): Trump has been a dominant user of social media and probably uses it a little bit better than all of his political opponents of the time. Is it a re-occurring theme among presidents that get elected, obviously, that they use the modern means of communication better than their opponents, they pick up on it quicker?
JON MEACHAM (HISTORIAN): Absolutely, it’s something, that’s not something you stick on the end of a leadership style, it’s an inherent part of it. Jefferson and Lincoln learned how to write quickly and well at a time when the printed word was so important. Franklin Roosevelt -- and across the Atlantic, Winston Churchill – understood radio. John Kennedy and Ronald Reagan fully understood television. And now Trump now fully understands, not only social media, which is important, but also reality TV.
SAMUEL: Right.
MEACHAM: So he is very much a creature of how ordinary Americans, many of whom feel alienated from institutions, actually think and feel.
