october12–25, 2020 | newyork 21
necttworacehorses,youusuallyendup
witha fasthorse.AndI reallywas—you
know,I hada—agoodgenepoolfromthe
standpointofthat.”Addressinga rallyin
Mississippiin 20 16,heinstructedthe
crowd,“I haveIvyLeagueeducation,smart
guy,goodgenes.I havegreat genesandall
thatstuff,whichI’ma believerin.” (In the
annalsofMississippi politics,Trump’s
highlightinghisIvyLeaguepedigreewas
probablymorenovelthanhisemphasison
geneticpurity.)
Thepresident’s ideaofa fixedgenetic
elite—and its necessary underclass
counterpart—wouldseemtoundercutany
moralbasisforhisownprivilege. (Thebest
moralcaseforlettingrichpeoplekeep
theirmoneyisthat they workedhardto
earnit.Soif Trump’s wealthis entirelythe
productofwinningthegeneticlottery,why
nottaxit away andredistributethepro-
ceedstohislessfortunateinferiors?)It
alsostandsinstarkcontrasttotheAmeri-
cancredoofprogress.
What Hath God Wrought?, Daniel
Walker Howe’shistoryof early-19th-century
America,emphasizesa beliefamongthe
Founders,andespeciallytheprogressive
Yankeefaction,inimprovement.Thiscon-
cept“constitutedbothanindividualanda
collectiveresponsibility, involvingboththe
cultivationofpersonalfacultiesandthe
developmentofnationalresources.” Justas
peoplecouldandmustdeveloptheirown
talentsthroughstudyanddisciplinedlabor,
theycouldenhancethepotentialofthe
countrybybuildingschoolhouses,canals,
lighthouses,anduniversities.
It wasa creedembracedbysuchdisparate
figuresasJohnQuincy Adams,Abraham
Lincoln,andFrederickDouglass.Their
politicalrivalsweresouthernplanterswho
distrustedcentralizedgovernment,which
mightthreatentheirimmutableplaceatop
thehierarchy. Theplantersdefinedsuccess
notashardworkbutasliberationfromhard
work,theburdenofwhichwouldfallonthe
peopletheyhadenslaved.
Trumphasnotnecessarilyabsorbedante-
bellumsouthernthought.Buthehasinter-
nalizedtheideaofsuccessasgenetically
codedandimpervioustoeffort.TheTrump
successformulais 100percentinspiration,
zeropercentperspiration.He hasrepeatedly
citedhisMIT-professoruncleashisown
scientificcredential.Trumpsaidat theCen-
tersforDiseaseControlandPreventionthat
heimpressedhishostswithhisinnate grasp
ofpublichealth:“I reallyge t it ...Everyone
ofthesedoctorssaid,‘Howdoyouknowso
muchaboutthis?’MaybeI havea natural
ability,” hesaid,asif hewereliterallyborn
understandingtheworkingsofa virusthat
didnotexist until 20 19.NBCreportedthat
Trumpwavedoff theneedtorigorouslypre-
pareforhisdebateonthegroundsthat
debating“isn’t somethingyou have to prac-
tice.”HisbiographerMichael D’Antonio
onceexplainedthat Trumpdisdains exercise
andgorgeson burgers and junk food
because“hereallybelievesin genetic gifts.
Hewantstoassumethat he can do some-
thingthatotherscan’t dosimply because of
whoheis.”
Thatis notanidealmentality for the per-
sonyou’dwanttobeincharge of ... well,
anything. But especially not a pandemic
that requires careful study and flexibility of
mind to follow a quickly mutating scientific
understanding and the perseverance to
encourage and adhere to disciplined
hygienic rituals. Everything to him is about
who you are, not what you do. Trump did
not need to learn about the pandemic
because he is smart. He did not need to pro-
tect himself from it because he is strong.
Trump not only lacks the patience for a
laborious public-health regimen; the entire
concept of it runs against his genetic fatal-
ism. The very possibility a disease could fell
blond Übermensch Donald Trump almost
surely never occurred to him. The president
is neither a rationalist nor a religious
believer. The closest proxy in his mind to a
divine force is genes: invisible, all-powerful,
mapping out our destinies. Were he capable
of introspection, he might look upon his
stricken body and dying presidency and
question his false god. ■
OCT. 5: After returning to the White House from the hospital, Trump waved from the balcony.
PHOTOGRAPH: WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES; NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES; ERIN SCOTT/REUTERS
