Issue 146

The Politics of personality - Dan Buddens Thoughts

09th October 2006

Some argue that politics has become too much about the personalities involved, their celebrity status and especially the feuding and rivalry between them. And they would be right. However, that is not to say that there should be no place in politics for personalities. We need the human element, and for a number of reasons .

First of all, think about how a committed politician can have an effect when it comes to making the tough decisions. A steadfast man or woman can act as the driving force, pushing for reforms unpopular within his or her party, such as when Blair managed to get Clause IV of the Labour Party's constitution change. Or, a politician's shining popularity with the people can allow them to pursue policies that, under anyone else, would probably have been unpalatable. For example, can you imagine progressive laws enforcing lower carbon emissions being passed in California, without action-hero Arnold Schwarzenegger in the driver's seat?

Ideas and visions shape lives, but personalities are the means of delivering them. On their own, ideas and visions do not exist - they need human intervention to become expressed in the first place. Often, they take the form of books and pamphlets. Very often they end up on the shelves of university libraries, where they sit in pretty leather-bound covers, gathering dust and dreaming of the occasional foray into a student's bag to be taken home and given the token scan-read of the introduction and conclusion (we've all done it). The point is that many of the visions that have seen light and have become implemented on a grand scale did so because there was a strong political personality campaigning, agitating for them, and pushing them forwards.

And there's more. The human element in politics is not just useful as a pragmatic tool for driving home policy, it is also vital in establishing a real link between the people and their representatives in parliament. Credibility can also be gained (or lost) on the basis of the personal life and background of a politician - Entirely credible politicians with strong policies and ideas have been brought down by controversy and scandals; Bill Clinton springs to mind here. And finally, the effect that a charismatic leader can have is huge. The stiff upper lip, never say die attitude kept Britons going during WWII, but it was Churchill that embodied this spirit. Without him driving home his 'fighting on the beaches' vision, the people's spirit may have waned, and died long before the American soldiers arrived.

Despite the downsides, the gossip and the feuding, real personalities in politics have their place and should remain. Because we're the ones who they're working for, and we're real people ourselves.

Daniel Budden