Trump isn’t a deity, he’s a dazzler

The former president won Iowa with opportunistic spirituality — and free pizza. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a planned paradise of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - Trump tells Iowa he heard [God’s call](. - Musk wants more of [Tesla’s AI windfall](. - The [metaverse]( may be worth it after all. - The [measles outbreak]( is a wake-up call. Io...wha? And on the seventh day, God gave us a pizza photo op. Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images If you had to name one thing you have in common with Donald Trump, what would it be? As a child, I was always a dazzler. If I wanted something, I would simply bat my eyelashes and hand out compliments like Halloween candy until I hit the unsuspecting adult with my request, which usually was a bowl of ice cream. It worked for a while, until my mother caught onto my scheme. “Are you dazzling me?” she’d ask, questioning the motive behind my praising her “particularly delicious meatloaf.” When reading Tim O’Brien’s [latest column]( (which is free for you to browse) about Trump’s “thunderous 30-point victory” in Iowa, I was reminded of my unofficial degree in dazzling. You see, the former president didn’t achieve a landslide because he presented the most promising policies or demonstrated his ability to win a heated debate. It was because he impressed a lot of ideological voters with [opportunistic spirituality]( and [free convenience store pizza](. In other words, he dazzled them. Trump’s “hold over his voters and party is profound, and the theatrics surrounding his Iowa win are as revealing as the vote itself,” Tim writes. Despite being decidedly [nonreligious](, preferring self-help [gurus]( over God, Trump has increasingly turned to the man upstairs as a way to dazzle his base. Yesterday, during his victory speech, the former president looked up toward the heavens and invoked his late mother-in-law, Amalija Knavs. “She’s up there — way up there looking down on us,” he [proclaimed](. Curiously, Trump “rarely voiced sentimentality about his parents and siblings in his pre-presidential years,” Tim notes. And if [cosplaying]( a God-fearing Christian wasn’t enough to convince you of his grifting, Tim says Trump recently [posted a video]( designating himself as a glorified babysitter of the Heavenly Father: “God looked down on his planned paradise and said, ‘I need a caretaker,’ so God gave us Trump,” the video noted. “Iowa pastors [voiced concerns]( about the video, but Iowa’s GOP voters didn’t seem to care,” Tim says. What the heck happened to the other candidates? Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley still thinks she has a shot at capturing New Hampshire, but Mary Ellen Klas [believes]( it’s too little, too late. And although Patricia Lopez [says]( Florida Governor Ron DeSantis “knocked a million doors and held 136 events in the last year,” he still landed in a distant second. Perhaps, then, the trouble is with the Iowa Caucus itself. “Because it’s held over a couple of hours on a weekday evening during the [bitterest]( part of winter, many Iowans are excluded from the process,” Patricia writes. But those subzero temperatures didn’t stop Trump from groveling. On Sunday, he [told Iowans to vote]( even if they were “sick as a dog,” saying that “it’s worth it” even if they were to pass away after voting. If that’s the message God’s so-called caretaker wants to send, then we’re in for a rough general election. Dazzling your family members to get a scoop of ice cream is one thing. But dazzling voters to damage democracy? That’s something else entirely. Bonus Election Watching: A [deep dive]( on Trump’s big Iowa win. — Tim O’Brien, Patricia Lopez, Nia-Malika Henderson and Frank Wilkinson [Money, Money, Money]( Is anyone remotely surprised to hear that Vladimir Putin is crossing his fingers in the hopes that Trump’s dazzling works? The Russian president — whose “reelection” in March is all but certain — wants nothing more than to see the MAGA man return to the White House so that the two demagogues can make a deal and live happily ever after. Already, “Putin has turned Russian society into a [war economy](. The Kremlin will spend 8% of GDP on its army in 2024, exceeding social expenditures for the first time since the breakup of the Soviet Union. Russia’s factories are churning out bullets and bombs, and its partners Iran and North Korea are sending more,” Andreas Kluth [writes]( (free read). Europe, meanwhile, has “[shipped weapons]( and ammunition to Kyiv, paid [the economic price]( of unhooking from Putin’s natural-gas nozzle, and rolled out an [unprecedented artillery]( of economic sanctions more typically associated with the US,” Lionel Laurent [says](. The [next step]( looks to be [legislation]( that would let the US seize some $300 billion in frozen Russian assets to help pay for Ukraine’s reconstruction. But before America’s European allies jump in to help, Lionel suggests they focus on taxing the profits rather than seizing them outright. Who benefits from Russia’s punishment? In a surprising twist, Matthew Winkler [says]( it’s Asia’s third-largest economy, India. This year, the world’s most populous nation and biggest democracy is joining JPMorgan’s benchmark for emerging-market debt, essentially filling Russia’s spot on the benchmark, which was revoked after Putin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Goldman Sachs predicts the entry could give Modi’s economy as much as $40 billion of inflows during the next 18 months. Bonus Crash Course Listening: Vladimir Putin [isn't giving up]( his assault on Ukraine. — Tim O’Brien and Marc Champion Musk’s AI Dreams What if I told you that I am uncomfortable growing Bloomberg Opinion Today to be a leader in AI & robotics without having ~25% voting control? It’s enough to be influential, but not so much that I can’t be overturned. Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Bloomberg Opinion Today. Perhaps your initial reaction would be: “Why is Jessica suddenly making gossamer-veiled threats to take her genius elsewhere?” And then, maybe: “Did [ChatGPT]( write this?” Which, I’m not gonna rule out that possibility! I actually stole the language from Elon Musk, so perhaps he got some help from [Grok](: While I’m absolutely not going anywhere, the CEO of Telsa might be. “Musk’s tweet usefully, and amusingly, reminds the world about one important thing,” Liam Denning [writes](. “Tesla is, in tangible terms, a successful maker of EVs facing a slowing, and more competitive market. In valuation terms, however, it is a dream conceived in Musk’s head that has been internalized by the capital markets.” In some ways, Musk makes a pretty smart threat, Matt Levine [argues](. “If you’re Tesla’s board, and you know that Elon Musk’s top priority now is building AI, wouldn’t you rather have him do it at Tesla than elsewhere? Presumably you want him paying attention to Tesla — that’s why you’ve paid him billions of dollars to be Tesla’s CEO! — so you’d be sad if he turned all of his attention elsewhere.” But it’s also rather obnoxious: “He can keep doing this!” Matt exclaims. “What if you give him 25% of Tesla, he sells that stake for billions of dollars, he uses the billions of dollars to fund some new distracting hobby, and he comes back to you in a year saying ‘yeah, I don’t know, my heart isn’t really in Tesla anymore, maybe if you gave me another 25% it would motivate me.’ The $55 billion pay package in 2018 — the one that the board is currently getting sued for — was supposed to motivate him to focus on Tesla, and it very clearly had the opposite effect!” Bonus Musk Reading: Tesla’s [recent wage increases]( illustrate how easy it is for companies to undermine union organizing drives. — Matthew Yglesias Telltale Charts You know how some people get the ick whenever they hear the word “[moist](”? Well, apparently Mark Zuckerberg and his metamates have tarnished the words “metaverse,” “virtual reality” and “augmented reality” so much so that Apple [refuses]( to use any of them! Instead, Tim Cook uses “spacial computing” to describe the $3,500 Vision Pro headset, which is being released early next month in a [limited production run](. Regardless of whether the metaverse gives you the ick, most people still see it as an embarrassing money pit. But Dave Lee [thinks]( that perception is wrong. “The metaverse will be worth it,” he writes, arguing that “Meta has the resources and talent to nurture multiple innovations at once.” Nobody likes shots. Whether it be alcohol or ammunition or immunization, shots are absolutely not a pleasant experience. But unlike the former two, vaccinations are at least helpful (and come with a complimentary Dum Dums pop). Consider measles. In recent weeks, US health officials have been [ringing alarm bells]( about potential spread of the illness. Although a handful of cases doesn’t sound like a huge deal, kids — who aren’t fully vaccinated until their second dose — are vulnerable to the virus. “Of all the vaccines to skip, the routine combination shot for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) is a headscratcher,” Lisa Jarvis [writes]( (free read). “Measles can spread like wildfire among the unvaccinated, and it hits people hard. Beyond the pain and discomfort of a high fever and body-wide rash, there’s a high risk of hospitalization,” she explains. And yet an increasing number of Republicans — some living in states that are making it easier for children to forgo routine shots — don’t believe vaccinations should be required for public school attendance. Further Reading After shares of Spirit [tumbled]( as much as 61%, the airline’s future is murky and unpromising. — Brooke Sutherland Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley [had a chance]( to reassure investors. Neither managed to do that. — Paul J. Davies Florida [wants to import]( cheaper prescription drugs from across the border. Good luck. — Bloomberg’s editorial board The DEI and ESG movements are well-intentioned, but [the virtue economy]( is over. — Allison Schrager Amid a luxury slump, [Burberry]( is struggling to keep pace with Hermes and Brunello Cucinelli. — Andrea Felsted There’s a reason why Germany the country is rich but [German people]( are poor and angry. — Chris Bryant Electric vehicles [are cheaper than ever]( before. That’s bad for early adopters. — David Fickling Here’s yet[another headache]( for millennials and Gen Zers: insurance. — Erin Lowry ICYMI ABC [canceled]( its debate after Haley and Trump declined. Qatar says it [brokered a deal]( to get medicine to hostages. Target and Walmart are [locking up]( underwear. Kickers This [93-year-old]( is as fit as a 40-year-old. Someone is finally buying Joan Didion’s [apartment](. Thousands of US cities could become [ghost towns]( by 2100. A cloned monkey [lived to adulthood]( for the first time. Quinta Brunson’s [dress]( was supposed to look wrinkled. Notes: Please send cage-free underwear and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads](, [TikTok](, [Twitter](, [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022