The Intelligence Level of the World’s Demagogues

Two old friends are having a discussion about Benjamin Netanyahu and his level of intelligence; one says he’s “stupid,” and the other disagrees.

Now, I don’t follow Israeli politics as closely as either of these two, but here’s my take on the matter: Insofar as he’s a demagogue, and an extremely effective one at that, we need to grant that he possesses intelligence along a certain dimension that is sufficient to enable him to figure out, with fabulous precision, how to address his audience and control their behavior at the polls.

It’s unclear if he’s capable of solving differential equations, speaking half a dozen languages, or following the advancements in particle physics, but that’s completely irrelevant. The only matter at play here is his love of power, and his capacity to manipulate “common” people, using rhetoric to stir up the passions of the masses so as to push him into power and keep him there.

Here in the U.S., we frequently have the same conversation about Trump. Those outside his base see him as unintelligent, a conclusion we draw from his childish use of the language, and his total lack of interest in information that would have helped him do his job (Where is Israel? Should COVID patients ingest bleach?) But again, this is irrelevant, in the same way that characteristics like charisma and height are irrelevant to the success of chess players.

In addition, Trump is clearly a criminal sociopath. Now, most people don’t think of people like Netanyahu (or Hungary’s Orban or Turkey’s Erdogan) as kind and decent people, but they don’t seem as deeply disturbed as Trump.