"Trump doubled down on Twitter later that night, blaming ‘gross negligence’ by the DNC for allowing the hack, and saying that the RNC had been untouched because it ‘had strong defense.’ In fact, the RNC had also been penetrated by Russian hackers, along with dozens of other political organizations and think tanks in Washington. Russia even extracted piles of materials from these systems, fuel that could have easily have been thrown onto the WikiLeaks fire. But Moscow didn’t do that. There were no corresponding dump of GOP secrets, and that curious asymmetric act of restraint had furthered bolstered the conclusion that Moscow aimed to hurt Clinton and help Trump.”
“The level of suspicion (Republican views of Russian hack attacks) was so deep in some pockets that some of the Kremlin’s claims were given more credence than the American government’s. The failed outreach was an early sign of trouble, not only for the Obama administration but the country-a clue that the political fault lines in America had widened to the point that it was no longer safe to assume the two parties could cooperate even against a foreign adversary. And while Trump didn’t create this current of hostility and suspicion, he expanded and exploited it, mounting offensives during the campaign to discredit the FBI, CIA, the courts, and other core institutions. In the months ahead, his Republican allies would repeatedly undermine investigations into Russian interference, and turn their attacks on the CIA, FBI and other core national security institutions. Putin had weaponized intelligence; (Majority Leader and Republican Senator Mitch) McConnell and the GOP weaponized denial.”
“Then (Trump) laid into the news outlets who were following and reporting on the Russia story. Something had to be done about it. The media had it all wrong. Trump was the real victim. ‘The level of dishonesty is out of control,’ he said. Once his opening rant died down, Trump was swamped by a volley of Russian questions from the assembled press corps. The first question: ‘Did you fire Mike Flynn?’ Again, the problem for Trump wasn’t Flynn or any of his other aides who appeared to have sought counsel from the Russians or even offered assistance in return. No, the problem was that someone from the inside had leaked tidbits about all this to the press.”
“(Author) Simpson also ran through Trump’s many business activities that smacked of money laundering. ‘There were a lot of real estate deals where you really couldn’t tell who was buying the property,’ he told the committee. ‘Sometimes properties would be bought and sold, and they were be bought for one price and sold for a loss shortly thereafter, and it really didn’t make sense to us.’ Most suspicious of all were Trump’s golf courses in Ireland and Scotland where ‘hundreds of millions of dollars’ seemed to disappear. ‘They’re sinks,’ he said, ‘they don’t actually make any money.’”
Crime in Progress by Glenn Simpson - 2019
“I had started paying attention to candidate Trump when Cambridge Analytica sued me, because that was when I learned that the firm was working for him. At first, his campaign was a mess. But then he began repeating phrases like ‘Build the wall’ and ‘Drain the swamp,’ and he started to rise in the polls. I called (colleague) Gettleson and said, ‘Well, this sounds eerily familiar, doesn’t it.’- because these were the exact phrases CA had tested and included in reports sent to (Steve) Bannon well before Trump announced. Meaning that, throughout the spring 2016, when Cambridge Analytica was supposedly working for Ted Cruz, the fruits of its research seemed to be (wink wink!) making their way to Donald Trump.”
American Oligarchs by Andrea Bernstein - 2020
“One thing you can’t help seeing at Trump Washington is a Civil War memorial near the 14th hole, which overlooks the Potomac River. It reads: ‘The River of Blood - Many great American soldiers, both of the North and South, died at this spot, ‘The Rapids,’ on the Potomac River. The casualties were so great that the water would turn red and thus became known as ‘River of Blood.’ It is my great honor to have preserved this important section of the Potomac River! - Donald J. Trump.’ It’s a very nice monument except for one little problem: It didn’t happen. No battle like that occurred anywhere near the monument. Three different Civil War historians confirmed the lie.”
Commander in Cheat by Rick Reilly - 2019
A Warning by Anonymous - 2019
“Now, much like Fox News had done for years, it was time to remind the right-wing women of the country that they too could be raped, that the right-wing men could be killed or replaced, much as they already have been, in their own minds, by the forces of political correctness. . . The men and women around me were burning with a rage and ready to fight, to destroy, to dismember—if only Trump gave them permission.”
“Previously, I’d read articles about how Trump’s candidacy and anti-immigration position had attracted extremists, but I’d been ignorant as to exactly how much sway he held over the white-supremacy world. In fact, it wasn’t until the summer of 2016 that a lot of people began to take notice of how just popular Trump was with the racist groups of the country, including the resurgent Ku Klux Klan, Aryan groups, and Neo-Nazis, many whom I began to see in the crowds at his rallies. They held Trump up as the Great White Hope and pinned their hopes and aspirations of a white America on him while lashing out at anyone they perceived as a threat.”
The People are Going to Rise Like the Waters upon your Shore by Jared Yates Sexton - 2017
“If the president’s assault on democracy seems to remote for most Americans, don’t worry . . . (Trump) has repeatedly tried to leverage his office to punish what he calls ‘Democratic states’ - those where the majority voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016, ignoring the fact his supporters live in those places, as well. . . He rants about (California’s) governor, Gavin Newsom, for criticizing administration policies, and he believes the state ‘stole’ electoral votes from him by allowing so many ‘illegal’ voters to cast ballots. After the wildfires devastated homes and properties in California, Trump insisted that the federal funds be cut off to the state. No emergency dollars should be flowing to Californians, the president told staff.”
“This is a man who famously drives his golf cart on greens. . . In golf, that’s the unholiest-of-unholies. Driving your cart on the green is like hanging your laundry in the Sistine Chapel. A green is a tender and delicate thing. Caddies don’t even set their bags on it. Driving on the green leaves tire tracks on the perfect surface that can send your partner’s putt careening off line, not to mention the putts of the 100 players behind you. I’ve met people who were 100% for Trump politically but vow they’ll never vote for him again because he drove on the green.”
“The reason the President wanted a new head prosecutor. . .was so that while in office, he could arrange to be federally indicted. In the event he loses the election in November, he could then pardon himself. . . The reason behind that unprecedented and serpentine reasoning was that Trump knows perfectly well that he is guilty of the same crimes that resulted in my conviction and incarceration.”
Kill All Normies by Angela Nagle - 2017
“In the end, (Pat) Buchanan was one of the paleocons to back Trump and many of those who formerly loathed most of what (Milo) Yiannopoulos and what he represented decided to change their minds and back the winning horse, not only of Trump, but also of the new libertines of the online irreverent ‘punk’ right. Having lost Buchanan’s conservative culture war, they were perhaps strategically right to calculate that the only way they could ever have at least some of their ideas heard again would be to back a groping, lecherous, godless presidential candidate and a libertine figure such as Yiannopoulos and his army of online racist, foul-mouthed, porn-loving nihilists, who in many ways represent everything people like Buchanan are supposed to stand against. The rise of Milo, Trump and the alt-right are not evidence of the return of conservatism, but instead of the absolute hegemony of the culture of non-conformism, self-expression, transgression and irreverence for its own sake - an aesthetic that suits those who believe in nothing but the liberation of the individual and the id, whether they’re on the left or right. The principle-free idea of counterculture did not go away; it has just become the style of the new right."
The Apprentice by Greg Miller - 2018
“And while we’re watching the merry-go-round of the investigations go round and round and tuning into ourselves again and again at the top of our news feeds, Donald Trump’s administration has rescinded all climate and clean energy goals and a total of sixty-seven environmental rules have been - or about to be - rescinded, including regulations on methane emissions and reporting.”
The Truth has Changed by Josh Fox - 2018
“The oil industry picked Trump, then picked Rex (Tillerson of ExxonMobil) to be Secretary of State, then . . . The oil industry seems to be picking them all. What is the difference between a Russian oil oligarch saying there was no interference in the elections and an American oil oligarch saying there were no interference in the elections? . . . The oil companies are choosing the president. . . . It is that oil companies are getting together and making deals and governments are getting in the way. Democracies get in the way.”
The Trouble with Reality by Brooke Gladstone - 2017
“(Trump) struck a bargain, a classic authoritarian deal, with his supporters. You can bask in my favor and recognition, in the promises I make and the license I bestow, and all I ask in return is that you believe whatever I say, whenever I say it. Even when it is false. Even when it contradicts the reality of your own experience. (Political theorist Hannah) Arendt saw that in her time, too. ‘Instead of deserting the leaders who had lied to them, they would protest that they had known all along the statement was a lie and would admire the leaders for their superior tactical cleverness.’”
“With their guards down, Fox (News)’s audience is then told they are part of a group of ‘ordinary Americans.’ This identity is hammered home over and over, which is why there are so many references to ‘us’ and direct chatting to the audience by the moderators. The audience is reminded that if you are really an ‘ordinary American,’ this is how you-i.e., ‘we’-think. This primes people for identity-motivated reasoning, which is a bias that essentially makes people accept or reject information based on how it serves to build or threaten group identity rather than on the merits of content. . .This is how, for example, viewers could reject criticism of Donald Trump for saying racist things: they internalized the critique as an attack on their own identity rather than that of the candidate.’”
Mindf*ck by Christopher Wylie - 2019
“Trump famously bragged that his supporters were so ardent, ‘I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters.’ . . .(Author James Fenimore) Cooper (of the American Democrat) observed (after returning to New York after several years in Europe) with eerie prescience: ‘The demagogue always puts the people before the constitution and the laws, in face of the obvious truth that the people have placed the constitution and the laws before themselves.’”
“Four banks had large Trump exposures. (Donald) Trump had personally guaranteed $830 million of debt, which was reckless of him, but even more so for the banks,’ as (reporter Neil) Barksy later wrote. . . Trump tried to stave it off. At one point, Barksy reported, (Father) Fred Trump sent an attorney to buy $3.5 million worth of gambling chips at one of (Donald) Trump’s casinos and then leave, essentially making an unregistered $3.5 million loan to his son, which enabled Donald to make a bond payment. . . On June 15, 1990, the day before Trump’s birthday party at the Taj Mahal with the faux-shuttle and scantily clad dancers, Trump’s Castle casino failed to make its bond interest payments. . . From then on, however, mainstream American banks all but ceased doing new business with Trump. He would have to look elsewhere for money: abroad.”
“The sales team, with the Trumps acting as chief marketers (of Trump SoHo hotel/condo apartments), let out a stream of positive numbers to buyers and the press: 31% sold, 53% sold, 60% sold. This is not entirely unheard of in the world of high-end real estate, where it’s widely understood that everyone is inflating figures to some extent. For example, a claim of 60 percent sold is understood to mean a project is actually 40 percent sold. But the Trump SoHo, documents later filed with New York’s attorney general showed, wasn’t anywhere near 60 percent sold in 2008. It was less than 15 percent sold. . . Four months later, the Trumps were sued for an ‘ongoing pattern of fraudulent misrepresentation and deceptive sales practices.’ According to the civil complaint, Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Donald Trump and their Trump SoHo business partners were ‘engaged in a coordinated pattern of falsely overstating the number of Trump Soho Units sold,’ the complaint alleged, ‘because robust sales are a strong indication of the development’s value and that the Units are well priced in the marketplace.’”
A Higher Loyalty by James Comey - 2018
“I was coming to L.A. to speak to more than five hundred potential new special agents. I couldn’t wait to connect with them. . . Our newly defined mission was to ‘protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States.’ . . And then I stopped in midsentence. On the TV screens along the back wall, I could see ‘Comey Resigns’ in large letters. . . The screens were behind my audience, but they noticed my distraction and started turning in their seats. . . The message now reads ‘Comey Fired.’ . . The FBI director travels with a communication team so he can be reached by the Justice Department or White House in seconds, anytime of day or night. But nobody called.”
“The FBI is able to do that work credibly because it is not - and is not seen as - a tool of the president. ‘I need loyalty. I expect loyalty.’ To my mind, the demand was like Sammy the Bull’s Cosa Nostra induction ceremony - with Trump, in the role of the family boss, asking me if I have what it takes to be a ‘made man.’”
Unhinged by Omarosa Manigault Newman - 2018
“His nonverbals told the story: Trump was waving his hands aggressively, pointing his fingers with hostility. He moved like he was being attacked. A young woman was dead, and he was only thinking about his own discomfort. He said, ‘How about a couple of infrastructure questions?’ He had no concept of the magnitude of Charlottesville (riot) and wanted to move on to business as usual. This man did not have one ounce of empathy.”
“I’ll go on the record and say that Donald Trump has never read from beginning to end any of the major pieces of legislation, policies, or even some of these executive orders that he has signed. Senior advisers spoon-fed him five to ten bullet points about the legislation and forgo any discussion of the complexities. To this day, his team pushes through Trump’s EOs and bills, and Donald has only a surface level understanding of the content he’s signing into law.”
“There is no longer any need for compromise when you can silence the opposition with virtual intimidation. Our current president exploits the mob mentality, which is the most consequential aspect of his charged rhetoric. Trump revels in the herd-like behavior of his followers. . . His falsehoods get retweeted by the tens of thousands before the fact-checkers wake up.”
Hoax by Brian Stelter - 2020
“As the number of (COVID-19) cases ballooned and the CDC warned about ‘disruption to everyday life might be severe’ . . . Democrats said Trump wasn’t taking the threat seriously enough. Trump rebuffed them and claimed the virus was ‘very well under control in our country.’ Fox’s (News) overarching storyline was set: the damn Democrats were unfairly using the virus as a cudgel against Trump. One night Laura Ingraham’s show screamed ‘LEFT WEAPONIZING CORONAVIRUS FEARS.’”
“When the virus was silently spreading across the United States, some of Fox’s biggest stars denied and downplayed the threat posed by the virus; Trump echoed them; and they echoed back. . . Most Americans knew that Trump was untrustworthy, but the Fox base still trusted him. They also trusted Hannity, who dismissed ‘coronavirus hysteria,’ and Laura Ingraham who called Democrats the ‘panDEMic party.’ . . . As ICU admissions and the death toll rose, Fox’s most vociferous critics said the network had blood on its hands.”
Disloyal by Michael Cohen - 2020
“Screwing small businesses again, the script was the same for more than 100 vendors for Trump University. I told them the ‘school’ only had $1M in cash to meet all its liabilities, which came to $5M, so they had to take twenty cents on the dollar, or sue the company in bankruptcy, which would only drag out the inevitable and waste even more money and time. . . One after another, faced with the prospect of pouring more good money after a bad debt, they capitulated. . . To Trump, this represented winning, and I never once witnessed a glimmer of sympathy or humanity or regret or shame in his demeanor.”
Enough Said by Mark Thompson - 2016
"'Is this your boat? Or. . . did it become your boat?. . At least you got a nice boat out of the deal.'"
Whose Boat is this Boat? Comments that Don't Help in the Aftermath of a Hurricane by Donald Trump -2018
"Donald Trump speaks as if the truth and the right policies were blindingly obvious, and the so-called wise counselors who claim that the world is a complicated place, and that the policymaking needs to take account of that complexity, are idiots or in somebody's pocket. Saying the 'unsayable' is the clearest possible way of signaling this contrary stance. . . He may be sui generis, but the fundamentals of Trumpian rhetoric - the explicit rejection of the decorum and moderation of traditional political discourse, its replacement with anger, shock tactics, and radical policy simplification, the fetishization of tell-it-like-it-is 'honesty' as the only value in public language-- can be heard in the speeches and slogans of populists and antipoliticians across the developed world. In the United States, the Republican Right has been experimenting with inflammatory, extremist rhetoric at least since the birth of the Tea Party, though many of those responsible for it claim to be aghast at where it has led. Once this new rhetoric of rage would have been political suicide. Today it resonates with tens of millions of Americans, while--to them, but not only to them--the cadences and tropes that used to hold way at elections have come to sound evasive, stuffy, and remote."
If You Give a Pig a White House by Faye Kanouse - 2019
“If you give a pig the White House, he’ll ask to watch tv. When you let him watch tv, he’ll want to tweet.Tweeting will make him hungry, so you’ll order his favorite meal. When you serve him the well-done burgers, you’ll have to make sure that he gets more than anyone else. Getting more than everyone else will remind him of his policy positions. So he’ll ask you for a briefing. When the briefing isn’t brief enough, his mind will start to wander. When his mind wanders, he will probably oversimplify complex problems and make unconstitutional decisions. So you’ll have to hire people with no integrity to help him get public support for his agenda.”