2 Twitters = 2 Trumps: How’s that for math?
Photo credit: nationalreview.com
By Jay C. Hauser, Staff Writer
President Trump’s 2016 campaign is long over. The days of campaign aides scrambling to spin whatever blather the then-candidate tweeted at 3:00 a.m. are long gone. President Trump’s personal Twitter account (@realDonaldTrump, not @POTUS), is now an asset to the administration. With 26.1 million followers, the personal account is a microscope into the thoughts and ramblings of the man holding the nation’s highest office. Many view it as a way of staying up-to-date on pressing issues that reach President Trump’s desk, a simplistic view into the White House’s agenda. This could not be further from the truth.
In any administration, the White House staff holds all the power. Any information that reaches the Resolute Desk goes through many people first, where it is subject to comments and changes. In an ordinary administration, the president’s agenda is shaped and influenced by the White House staff. Presidents usually come in with some fleshed-out plans.
However, the Trump administration is hardly ordinary. The President lacks political experience, policy knowledge and the attention span to learn. His “plans” are nothing more than catchphrases meant to appeal to a populist voter base. He, more than any other President, relies on the White House staff to set, as well as shape and influence the agenda.
With this administration, we have two President Trumps. We have the one created by the White House Staff that acts as the officeholder, and we have the other, a continuation of the pre-politics Donald Trump. The former, as a construct informed and filtered by a staff, creates the agenda and acts as President. The latter doesn’t care about the agenda and is different from the President. The former’s Twitter account (@POTUS), is controlled by Dan Scavino.
The latter’s Twitter account (@realDonaldTrump) is controlled by President Trump. @realDonaldTrump’s “agenda” is a false one based on personal vendetta, ripe with misspelled accusations of wiretapping and offhanded comments about a rigged DNC election. @POTUS is more refined, a comparatively traditional politician’s Twitter account. @realDonaldTrump serves as a distraction from @POTUS and its agenda of walls and bans. Follow @POTUS to stay informed. Follow @realDonaldTrump to see the thoughts of the man who we elected as President.
