The nineteenth century French aristocrat and political writer Alexis de Tocqueville was singularly unimpressed with President Andrew Jackson, whom he met when visiting the United States in 1831, wrote Gary M. Pendy Professor of Social Sciences Jean Yarbrough in City Journal.
“After meeting Jackson, Tocqueville concluded that the low tone of American society started at the top,” said Yarbrough. “In Tocqueville’s estimation, Jackson was ‘a man of violent character and middling capacity.’ Worse, he seemed to have no talent for politics,” she continued.
Given that, you might assume that Tocqueville, observing from beyond the grave, would not be a fan of America’s current president, Donald J. Trump. However, Yarbrough claimed, the two men have more in common than one might think.
“Trump campaigned on issues that have a Tocquevillean resonance,” she wrote. “Put another way, Tocqueville highlighted certain dangers to democratic liberty and greatness that Trump… instinctively seized on to win the presidency.”
