Nothing to do with it

Logic has nothing to do with it.
Economics has nothing to do with it.
Political ideology has nothing to do with it.
The Constitution has nothing to do with it.
Tradition has nothing to do with it.
Moral grounding has nothing whatsoever to do with it.

It's power, and a willingness to do literally whatever it takes to get and keep it, and consequences to others be damned. "Whatever it takes" includes making promises you never intend to keep, changing stances on issues at a whim, distracting attention from the real story, ridding yourself of inconvenient allies (or appearing to do so), and using threats to silence enemies.

A fearsome enemy. A dangerous philosophy.