In politics, a little charisma can go a long way

T he startling sight of Canadian lawmakers chanting “four more years” as President Barack Obama finished a bromide-laden speech to Parliament Wednesday was astonishing. It spoke not so much to the substance of the discourse — he was, for instance, critical of Canada on NATO — as it did to the passion of his presentation, the pitch of his voice, the authentic emotion. It was, in short, the reaction to a powerful charisma.

Obama has it. Justin Trudeau also has it. Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, the third “amigo” in the continental group hug that took place this past week, demonstrated it too. Indeed, the North American Leaders Summit was, mostly, an exercise in the power of charisma.

We don’t mention this disdainfully, as a vacuous or shallow trait. The opposite: All three know that personal magnetism, and the trust and warmth it can build, is essential to harnessing the political capital needed for policy success. As pundits analyze the outcome of the Brexit vote, or the rise of Donald Trump, or the success of Philippines strongman Rodrigo Duterte — or indeed the reasons so much of history is littered with people following leaders into sometimes bad decisions — they need to remember that the intangibles of personality often override calculus and strategy.

The leaders of Britain’s “Remain” campaign appeared utterly bereft of any friendly aura. It hurt them against firebrand foes. Hillary Clinton also lacks it. This has hampered her quest to sell moderation against Trump, who is seductive to a large swath of Americans. His opponents may see him as a thug; to millions of Americans he is a plain-speaking, take-charge guy.

In his speech to the House of Commons, Obama said unoriginal things such as: “Canadians and Americans are united in our understanding that diversity is a source of strength.” And: “If a CEO makes more in a day than a typical employee makes in a year, that kind of inequality is not just bad for morale in the company, it turns out to be bad for the economy.” And of course he urged us, while (rightly) flattering our armed forces, to do more for NATO. Nothing new in all this. But we lapped it up, soaking in the messages as fresh thinking for troubled times.

Of course, charisma, selfies, photo ops and sound bites have always underscored effective politics. They’re a challenge for strategists and pundits, but important signposts for voters.

So Trudeau used his Three Amigos charm offensive to focus mostly on tackling climate change. Obama used his to focus on security, and address extremism and insularity. Peña Nieto wanted trade and access. Each spoke intelligently. And each knew a little charisma can go a very long way.