The Psychological Assessment of Political Leadersprinciple. Critical to his self-image (as well as to his campaign strat-
egy) was a view of himself as a victim.
These characteristics reflect a strong component of self-idealiza-
tion. Most people wish to think well of themselves. However, Bill
Clinton appears to believe the best of himself and to either avoid or
discount evidence from his own behavior that indicates all is not as
he believes it to be. Any attention called to a number of discrepan-
cies between his real behavior and his view of it, as was done by the
press during the campaign and the first two years of his presidency,
was met with denial, exculpatory explanations, mostly long but
sometimes short answers that did not deal directly with the point,
and, when all else failed, unconcealed frustration and anger.
Relatedness
On the face of it, it seems clear that Clinton's interpersonal style
reflects movement toward people. Much has been made of his empa-
thy and natural friendliness, and to a substantial degree (with some
very important caveats) these characterizations appear accurate.
Much has also been written about Clinton's difficulty in saying
"no" and his eagerness to please. Both are often attributed to "Clin-
ton's well-known need to be liked." Indeed, the brief biography of
Governor Clinton that appeared on the front page of the New York
Times (Kelly 1992) on the day of his election was entitled "A Man
Who Wants to Be Liked and Is."
But the idea of a "need to be liked" does not fully come to grips
with another psychological tributary of Clinton's political style—his
tendency to build up and then lash out against institutions or groups
who oppose his policies. The press is one example of such a group,
but there are others, including lobbyists, special interests, "profiteer-
ing drug companies," "greedy doctors," "muscle-bound labor
unions," and so on. Presidents, like others, can be known by, and can
benefit from, having certain kinds of enemies. However, for a man
who is said to have such a strong need to be liked, his list of enemies
is rather long and inclusive, and the characterizations are often some-
what harsh. It appears that Clinton does not want to be liked so
much as be validated. He wants others to accept the view of himself
that he holds, and when they don't, he disowns them and turns
against them angrily.