When Character Is No Longer King

"The worst scenario would be to find ourselves with a man who tries to fulfill the image of Obama-as-Savior. With a 'righteous wind' at his back, and fanatically adoring enthusiasts in both the United States and around the world, it isn’t hard to envision the rise of The One who has the uncanny ability to persuade people to get lockstep behind him, turning voters into followers and followers into worshippers. There is no need to list historical examples that should serve as constant warnings against this sort of thing, is there? Any major disaster can push a popular leader toward authoritarianism or worse. It would be naïve to pretend it can’t happen again, or can’t happen in America."