In his book Against Empathy, researcher Paul Bloom makes the case that empathy is an “irrational emotion” that “muddles our judgment.” He notes that some of the worst decisions made by individuals and nations are often motivated by “honest, yet misplaced, emotions.” Empathy distorts our judgment, he says. Without it, our decisions would be “clearer, fairer, and ultimately more moral.”
Last week, we had a president who prided himself on feeling everyone’s pain, on being an empathetic president. Where did it get us? Exactly.
This week, and for the next four years at least, we have a president who is anything but empathetic. We call this a bad thing and even hold protests to claim Trump’s lack of empathy is terrible for the nation. But is it?
There’s no question that President Trump’s candor is unprecedented. Most politicians say what they’re “supposed” to say in order to cater to every person or every group in the land. In their attempt to leave no one out, or to at the very least offend no one, they use empathy to guide their decision-making.
That may have been the problem all along.
President Trump tells it like it is. If he says the American flag is red, white and blue, and someone doesn’t like it, so be it. He lacks the nuance and the politically correct style, the empathy, of most presidents, which is precisely why he got elected in the first place. Trump’s confident, bold nature and his “I don’t care what you think of me, I’m going to do what I believe is right” attitude are his greatest assets.
It is also his worst flaw, as is the case with all of us. Trump is raw, and raw sometimes hurts. But this same quality that sometimes hurts, the hard and steely nature of his, may be just what the country needs. Trump isn’t flowery, and he may not seem benevolent. But altruism looks different on different people. It’s not unlike the tough love vs. the I-want-to-be-your-friend parenting styles. The latter feels better but fails, whereas the former feels worse but does good.
Indeed, writes Bloom, “limiting our impulse toward empathy is often the most compassionate choice we can make.”
Suzanne Venker (@SuzanneVenker) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. She is an author, Fox News contributor, and trustee of Leading Women for Shared Parenting. Thinking of submitting an op-ed to the Washington Examiner? Be sure to read our guidelines on submissions.
