For fifteen years I have written about – and stressed the importance of – followers. I have never claimed that they are more important than leaders. I have claimed that they are as important as leaders. I have claimed that you cannot think intelligently about leaders without thinking about followers. And I have claimed that you cannot be an effective leader without taking followers into account at virtually every turn.
What’s been happening in American politics in recent weeks merits my follower-fixation. Followers have been the tail that’s been wagging the dog – which makes leaders the dog. For followers have been driving the action while the ostensible leaders – notably Republicans in the House and Senate – have been scurrying to catch up.
First some semantics. As it is used here the word “leader” refers to a person who is in a position of authority. As it is used here the word “follower” refers to a person who is not in a position of authority. Ergo, as these words are used here, leaders are Congressional Republicans, and followers are their constituents.
So, what’s the chain of command?
At the top would appear Republican President Donald Trump. Immediately below would appear Republicans who serve in the House and Senate. But appearances can be deceiving. Increasingly Congressional Republicans are distancing themselves from the President. Increasingly they are taking issue with what he says and does. And increasingly they are defying his orders or just exiting his orbit.
Disputes between Republicans in Congress and the MAGA Man in the White House are multiplying. Tariffs, redistricting, the Epstein files, Ukraine, boat strikes in the Caribbean, and status of the Secretary of Defense (or War), are emblematic of the larger point. That growing numbers of prominent Republicans are refusing to march, like automatons, in lockstep behind the chief executive.
How did this happen? Who’s driving the action? Who really is leading and who really is following? The answers are simple. The electorate is leading; the elected are following. While it’s true that American voters are without authority – they are, so to speak, ordinary people – they are not without power and nor are they without influence. In fact, they have both. American voters have the power to reward their elected officials – and the power to punish them. American voters can decide to reelect members of Congress – or they can decide not to reelect them. Moreover, American voters have influence. They can for example influence their peers, other voters, to vote one way or another. They can give money to their preferred candidates and causes. And they can, and do organize, they can marshal their numbers to affect changes in policies and politicians.
Once the honeymoon is over every American president tends to lose popularity. But some lose it more dramatically and precipitously than others. Trump is an example. As The Economist summarized it, “No recent president has fallen so low so quickly as Donald Trump.” The most recent Gallup Poll confirms the point – it has the president’s approval rating at 36% and his disapproval rating at 60%.
Is it any wonder that Republicans in Congress are starting to wake from their Rip Van Winkel-like nap? Is it any wonder that they are starting to play the dog to their constituents’ tail?