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Summary for the October Book Club book: Confidence Man (2022) This book is a full account of Trump’s life in the spotlight. It tracks his career from early New York real estate deals to his tumultuous tenure in the White House. It shows how his aggressive personality was molded early on and only intensified as the stage grew bigger. Introduction: A rare look into Trump’s life in the spotlight. In 1975, Donald Trump paid a visit to the offices of Richard Ravitch, the chairman of the New York State Urban Development Corporation. Trump wanted one thing, a tax exemption for his plans to renovate the Commodore Hotel on 42nd Street, but Ravitch was unmoved. Trump’s plan wasn’t well researched and he saw nothing in it that would qualify him for tax exemption. But Trump wouldn’t take no for an answer. Standing in his office, he told Ravitch, you either grant me tax exemption or I’ll have your job. To which Ravitch replied, you either get out of my office or I’ll have you arrested. Remarkably, the way Trump dealt with that problem is how he’d continue to deal with problems throughout his life. Positioning himself as the victim, he’d throw out all kinds of threats and accusations – the more unexpectedly outlandish, the better. It was a style that ultimately got him into the White House and resulted in one of America’s most violent transitions of power. In this summary to Maggie Haberman’s Confidence Man, I’ll cover how Trump’s bombastic personality was honed through his early years as a New York real-estate mogul, and how his signature chaotic leadership style only intensified as he ascended on to the world stage. Early Influences In 1980, Donald Trump spoke to a New York Times reporter about one of his most formative experiences. It was November 21, 1964, and an 18-year-old Trump accompanied his father to the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the newly completed Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which connects Brooklyn and Staten Island. It was a “sad experience” for Trump. It rained all morning as politicians patted each other on the back, and everyone failed to recognize the real man of honor: the 85-year-old Swedish engineer who designed the bridge, Othmar Ammann. His name wasn’t even mentioned. That’s when Trump realized that people will walk all over you if you let them. The way he saw it, they made a fool out of Ammann. And Trump vowed, from that day forward, no one would ever make a fool out of him. It’s a pretty strong origin story for a man like Trump. But the weird thing is that his account is full of inaccuracies. The record of the event shows that there wasn’t a cloud in the sky that day. Also, Ammann was one of the first people to be introduced, receiving a round of applause from the crowd. Plus, Ammann wasn’t Swedish, he was Swiss. Ironically enough, in 1986, that story played out in a similar way after Trump was given a contract to renovate the Wollman Rink in New York City’s Central Park. When the job was complete, Trump took the stage and declined to acknowledge the work done by city officials, the contractors, or the construction firm. Trump claimed all the credit. Art Nusbaum, the head of the construction firm that completed the job, noted that Trump isn’t interested in winning gold if it means he has to share the stage with silver and bronze. He wants them all. Citing Trump’s narcissism, Nusbaum’s firm refused to work with him again. Over time, Trump not only became the man who wanted all the attention and all the credit, but also the man who refused to leave the stage. The Trump presidency had many unexpected twists and turns, but looking back, it’s impressive just how consistent he’s been over the years. He was someone who was clearly influenced by a select number of people in his life, and he took those lessons and traits to create a personality and force of will that was ceaseless in its pursuit of recognition.
Naturally, at the top of the list of formidable influences was his father, Fred Trump. Fred’s father was a German immigrant who died in 1918 during a flu pandemic when Fred was just 12 years old. He left behind a small fortune (what would be half a million dollars today), thanks to small businesses he owned and land he’d purchased in Queens. It became the foundation for E. Trump & Son, named after Fred’s mom, Elizabeth. Fred was tasked with expanding the business and he eventually made valuable political connections in New York which helped him buy up land and create a real estate empire in the 1930s. By the 1960s, Fred had five kids, two daughters and three boys. What Fred taught all his children was to push through – to keep going no matter what. If their mother was having emergency surgery in the hospital, the kids went to school anyway. The boys especially looked up to their father, and Donald never deviated from his father’s plans. He went to the New York Military Academy, then to Fordham University, and finally to the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of business. While Fred’s influence loomed large over his career, Trump soon found another major influence in legendary New York lawyer Roy Cohn. Cohn made a name for himself by being part of the team that helped Senator Joseph McCarthy root out Communists and gay people from positions of power during the 1950s. Cohn became acquainted with Trump in the 1970s when Trump Management, Inc. was accused of discriminatory rental practices by the federal housing authority. To Trump, Cohn’s fight-tooth-and-nail-for-everything approach was everything he wanted to hear. Cohn was also a notoriously transactional individual. If you could be of use, he liked you. If he didn’t like you, well then, “he’d sell you down the tubes” is how Trump put it. It was like a Mafia don mentality. It was simple and it made total sense to Trump. As a pair of father figures, Fred laid out a path, while Cohn opened up new avenues of possibility. The Comeback Kid Donald Trump was always a politically minded businessman. To work in real estate, it just made sense to know which politician was in charge of zoning approvals and possible tax relief. But as the ’80s went on, Trump became more aggressive in getting his name associated with whatever issues were getting headlines. In 1989, after a woman was beaten and raped while jogging through Central Park, Trump used the case to take out a full-page ad in all of the major New York papers. In it, he called for the death penalty to be reinstated, and to “Bring back our police!” While Trump could reliably find a way to get his voice heard on any hot-button issue, he remained hesitant about entering politics in earnest. But it wasn’t for a lack of interest from other people. And no one was more interested than Roger Stone. A political consultant and lobbyist, Stone’s career dates back to the early ’70s, when he worked for President Richard Nixon, performing low-level “dirty tricks” against Nixon’s rivals. Since they first met in 1980, Stone was a firm believer in Trump’s political potential. And after Trump’s first book The Art of the Deal was published in 1987 and became a best seller, Stone encouraged him to test the political waters. Trump considered running on a Republican ticket in the 1988 election, then on the Reform Party ticket in 2000, and then again as a Republican in 2012. But each time, he pulled the plug on his campaign before it really got going. Throughout these years, Trumps experienced highs and lows. The 90s in particular had been rough. He’d gone through two high-profile divorces. Deals were falling through. His Taj Mahal casino was siphoning money. He was paying for things he couldn’t afford and borrowing money he couldn’t pay back. In August of 1990, the Wall Street Journal reported that he had a net worth of negative $294 million. In 1995 alone, he claimed $916 million in personal losses. Throughout it all, Trump blamed others for his problems. But by the late ’90s, a comeback was underway. Shares of Trump Hotels and Casinos went public and traded well enough to ease some of his money problems. But more than anything else, Trump had mastered the art of controlling his own narrative. In 1997, he published another book, The Art of the Comeback. Those days, he was a billionaire simply because he said he was. Then, in 2004, Trump stumbled upon an even better platform for brand recognition and expansion: The Apprentice. The Rise of the Popularist Trump was the star of The Apprentice for over a decade. It was a dominant show and it literally transformed the Trump brand. Soon everything – from bottled water and steaks to desk chairs and mattresses – was being officially branded with the Trump name. Twitter also helped. At first, Trump used it as a way to promote his various products and he soon became hooked. By the time the 2012 elections came along, he was using it as a soapbox for his political aspirations. The years leading up to that election were important for several reasons. During his short-lived campaign, he reconnected with Roger Stone and was introduced to Steve Bannon, a right-wing media mogul who used to work for Goldman Sachs. When Bannon talked about populism, he had Trump’s interest piqued. Still, at their first meeting, Bannon had to clarify that the term was populist, not “popularist,” which is what Trump saw himself as. More than anything else, his team worked hard at reframing Trump within the Republican party. He buried his playboy image and walked back many of his Reform Party claims, like being pro-choice and having progressive views on health care. Trump also proved he could get a crowd going. At the 2011 Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump got a huge response. A lot had changed since the last election. The 2008 economic crisis got a lot of voters angry, and the Tea Party political movement had mobilized many of these voters by tapping into their anger and encouraging more outsider candidates to run for office. When Trump took the stage and told the audience that Republican candidate Ron Paul had “zero chance of winning” applause broke out. They ate it up and major Republican Party officials took notice. They began to see the broad appeal that Roger Stone had seen all along. Though he ultimately decided against running in 2012, Trump was now a force to be reckoned with. With his Twitter account and his nationwide TV fame, media outlets never stopped reporting on his opinions, including his promotion of the debunked theory that Barack Obama wasn’t born in the US. His name stayed in the headlines. The more aggressive and outlandish his comments, the more press he could get. By early 2015, there was talk again of a potential run for the presidency, and this time, it was serious. But despite support from some folks in the Republican Party, Trump’s campaign quickly became a headache for many establishment players. After his announcement speech, Washington-based party officials held a private meeting to try and figure out how to handle him as a candidate. But, as they soon found, trying to “handle” Trump is a losing game. Throughout his career, whenever Trump got a whiff of someone trying to control him, he did the opposite of what they asked. Ask him to tone it down? He’d push further. The fact that the more negative things Trump said the more positively the voters responded , only made matters worse for the Republican leadership. It was like their hands were tied. For instance, there was his threat of banning Muslims from entering the country. Other Republican candidates condemned the remarks, but even bad press had a way of boosting Trump’s campaign. When his aids and his daughter Ivanka tried to get him to use a press conference to change his stance on the proposed ban, he made it clear. “You think I’m going to change?” he asked them. “I’m not changing.” What confused everybody was that Trump was right. He didn’t need to change. One of his advisors marveled, “I’ve never seen a situation before where someone fucks up and their numbers go up.” No Way Out It was an eventful election year, to say the least. Russian hackers broke into the email servers of the Democratic National Convention. A recording of Trump bragging about “grabbing” women by the genitals was leaked to the press. Even Trump was surprised when he ended up winning. He was already preparing to declare the election a farce and say that it had been stolen from him. Instead, he had to put together a White House cabinet quickly. Ultimately, Trump ran the White House as he’d run his other businesses. He kept people siloed off from one another, he stoked rivalries and competition between staff, he pushed back whenever someone tried to control him. Bad news wasn’t appreciated. People threw each other under the bus to avoid being blamed for problems and they fought viciously for Trump’s approval. It was just as he always liked it: Chaotic. Never boring. In fact, even before day one, there were problems. The FBI’s investigation into Russia’s efforts to influence the election plagued the administration’s first year. This problem wasn’t helped by Trump’s efforts to ask the FBI director, James Comey, for leniency and loyalty. But this is precisely how he dealt with problems in New York, and it’s how he intended to conduct business in the White House. Throughout his presidency, there was always one thing missing: someone like Roy Cohn. Someone who’d tell his enemies to go to hell and fight every battle like it was the last. Comey wasn’t going to be that man. His first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, wasn’t going to be that man, either. Sessions infuriated Trump by recusing himself from all matters related to the Russian investigation. Trump eventually fired Sessions, as well as many other cabinet members and White House staff, in his ongoing search for people who’d serve his specific needs. By mid-2019, Trump had lost more of his original cabinet than Reagan, Obama, and both Bushes. He’d already worked with three press secretaries, three chiefs of staff, and six communications directors. If they weren’t fired, they resigned. While the workplace was certainly chaotic, there was also the problem of Trump’s refusal to listen to expert advice, especially when it went against his own opinions. Trump long believed that other countries were taking advantage of the US, with money and efforts being wasted by having a military presence in places like South Korea. In Trump’s worldview, everything could be simplified by one-on-one transactional relationships. The US was helping South Korea, but what were they doing to help the US? It was a bad deal, and it should stop. By the time 2020 came around, Trump had endured an impeachment trial related to a conversation he had with the incoming president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky. The conversation sounded very much like the kind of transactional deal Trump was familiar with: withholding money in the hopes that Zelensky would investigate his enemies. But that year had a different challenge in store for the Trump administration: a pandemic. Trump generally took the COVID-19 outbreak as a personal affront. “Can you believe this is happening to me?” he asked multiple White House visitors and callers during the crisis. Certainly, campaigning for reelection was difficult for Trump amid the pandemic. Trump needed big live rallies where he could run off his list of grievances to an appreciative audience. His opponent in the 2020 election, Joe Biden, could effectively communicate without in-person events. And when it came to election day, Biden won both the popular vote and the electoral votes – being the first Democrat to win the state of Arizona in decades. Of course, Trump wasn’t going to admit defeat without a fight. While he didn’t have Roy Cohn in his corner, he had old friends like Roger Stone and his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani helped Trump to litigate the election in every way possible and Stone promoted a “Stop the Steal” campaign online. But neither predicted what would happen on January 6, 2021, when the electoral college votes were scheduled to be counted and confirmed in the Capitol Building. Trump had latched on to the idea that his vice president, Mike Pence, would be able to control the event and make sure the votes weren’t confirmed, theoretically keeping Trump in the White House. Despite Pence signaling that he wouldn’t go along with this plan, it nonetheless got plenty of attention online and Trump made sure his supporters turned out at the Capitol to put pressure on Pence to come through for him. Instead, the event turned into a violent riot that saw over 2,000 Trump supporters break into the Capitol Building, resulting in at least five deaths. When the rioters were eventually dispersed, Pence completed his job and confirmed the votes. It seemed this was what it took for Trump to finally consider leaving the White House, if not admitting defeat. In the coming days, nearly 150 pardons came pouring forth from the White House. But this time, there was no net to prevent Donald Trump’s fall. No family fund to withdraw money from. No bank willing to bail him out. But when he got into his presidential helicopter for the last time, a song was playing. Frank Sinatra’s rendition of My Way. Yes, this time Trump fell. But he went down doing it his way.
Summary Trump’s personality was honed by his desire to seek approval from his domineering father, as well as through formative mentors like the aggressive lawyer Roy Cohn. Trump’s desire for praise and recognition was apparent in his years as a New York real estate mogul, as was his chaotic style of leadership. All of these traits were heightened while in the White House, leading to an administration that featured unprecedented personnel turnover and, ultimately, a disastrous finale that tested the limits of democracy. About the author Maggie Haberman is a journalist who joined The New York Times in 2015 and was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2018 for reporting on the investigations into Donald Trump’s, and his advisers’, connections to Russia. She has twice been a member of a team that was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize, in 2021 for reporting on the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus, and in 2022 for coverage related to the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the Capitol. Before joining The New York Times as a campaign correspondent, she worked as a political reporter at Politico, from 2010 to 2015. She previously worked at The New York Post and The New York Daily News. Questions: 1. Trump started his campaign saying many things that are not real. Is it okay for politicians to lie? 1)“If youre going to be thinking, you may as well think big.-Donald Trump” He cares not about the fact, but the dream! 2. Hitler’s person in charge of propaganda Goebbels once said that if you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth? Is that the reality or is it possible for people to know that the truth is always the truth. 1)Trump boasted that he had surpassed his father, while insisting he didn’t want to brag about himself. He lied about not gambling at his casinos and his wife’s background. 1) Trump with handwashing obsessive-compulsive disorder build a dream for American to have a job, not to serve other countries to be hero but do something for his all citizens to have jobs. He seeks not for the governorship but the presidency.
3. The president of the United States swears an oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” Mr. Trump, just a few months ago, is on the record for calling for the “termination” of parts of the Constitution. Has he disqualified himself from the presidency?
1)The first president in U.S. history to be impeached twice by Congress for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress via scandal and election. The House of Representatives impeachment charge against Trump is "intentional incitement of insurrection." The U.S. Constitution stipulates that after the impeachment bill passed by the House of Representatives is sent to the Senate, more than two-thirds of the senators must agree that he is guilty before he can be removed from office. Although this recall trial may become a trial against the "former president", if the Senate really votes to pass it, it will still leave a stain on Trumps political career. The Senate could also vote to prevent Trump from running for president again or holding public office. However, some commentators worry that this impeachment case will further intensify political confrontation in the United States.
4. Many would argue that Mr. Trump, disqualified yourself from the presidency on Jan. 6, 2021, when he incited a mob he knew was armed to march on Congress and “fight like hell,” a mob that included Proud Boys since convicted of seditious conspiracy. Why hasn’t he condemned the rioters? 1)Kill with a borrowed knife!
5. On January 2021, Trump told Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to find hi extra votes — 11,780 to be precise. He also claimed in that call that 5,000 dead people had voted in Georgia, even though a study commissioned by his own campaign had found a day before that call that only nine so-called dead voters had cast ballots in Georgia in 2020. Why he off by 4,991 dead voters? That was a blatant lie, was it not? 1) So there were no additional ballots 2) They noted that approximately 8,900 total ballots were far less than the 18,000 that Trump had mentioned. 3) the objects captured on video were not suitcases or trunks, but standard ballot carriers that allow for seals to be added to prevent tampering. 4) Arizona lawmaker Rusty Bowers details the pressure put on him by Trump and Giuliani
6. Mr Trump has been charged in Manhattan with 34 felony counts related to hush money paid to two women, including a payment of $130,000 to porn film star Stormy Daniels, with whom he has been accused of having had a sexual encounter. In April 2018, he told reporters you didn’t know about the payments to Daniels. That was a lie. His own lawyer has admitted that was false; so why should any American believe a single word you say? 1)They “probably” wouldn’t vote for Trump nonetheless opt for him in a head-to-head matchup with Biden. 2) Trump is facing a level of scrutiny and criticism unlike anything he’s ever experienced before, and it may be taking a personal toll. If he concludes he’s going to lose anyway, why not jump ship now and let somebody else take the fall? All those bankruptcies his businesses have gone through? He managed in the end to convince himself that they were actually not failures 3) He ran the greatest campaign in history and showed everyone what a winner he was, then stepped aside once he had made his point, deciding to return to the business world where his true magnificence could be more fully realized. 4) He might also spin the tale as one of betrayal: with even Republicans conspiring against him, he decided that fighting on was no longer worthwhile, and he chose to let them lose without him in the hopes that they’d learn their lesson and reform their corrupt party. 7.A jury just found him liable for sexual abuse and for defaming E. Jean Carroll in his own civil rape trial in New York. He declined to testify and declined to even show up. Throughout American history, candidates for high office have had to quit over allegations of sexual indiscretions and yet here he is, asking the American public to give him a second term, after a jury of his peers found him liable for sexual abuse. Why isn’t you pulling out of the race? 1) Yes, Trump can run for president Fortunately for Trump, theres nothing in the Constitution prohibiting candidates with criminal records from holding office. In fact, an individual only has to be at least 35 years old and be a natural born citizen who has lived in the country for at least 14 years to hold the presidency.
8.Some people suggest that Mr. Trump will be the nominee again for the GOP all but ensuring Biden will win again. Do you think this is true? 1) Among Republicans, Donald Trump is dominating the primary field, outpacing rivals with resumes as governors, diplomats and entrepreneurs that would normally prove compelling. 2) As one troubled front-runner tightens his grip on the Republican nomination, President Joe Biden is on a glide path to victory on the Democratic side. The 80-year-old incumbent is facing only token opposition for the Democratic nomination despite concerns about his age and performance from many within his own party. 3) Whether voters like it or not, a Trump-Biden rematch may be on the horizon, raising the prospect of a deeply uncertain election season that only intensifies the nation’s political divide. Already, Trump is skipping his party’s presidential debates and his court appearances are sometimes drawing more attention than his campaign stops. And Biden has barely begun to campaign as he grapples with questions about his age and his son’s legal challenges. 4) Biden is “old” and “confused,” and Trump is “corrupt” and “dishonest.” 5) As Yogi would say, ‘Ain’t over ‘til it’s over.”
9.Was there anything the author wrote that shocked you? 1) She was described as "the New York Times Trump whisperer", and it gives Trump and those close to him plenty of voice – and rope.
1. Will Donald Trump be the next American President? 1) Still the front–runner 2)Theres always opposition when you do something big. I do many things that are controversial. When people see it, they love it! We will follow two simple rules: Buy American and hire American. When America is united, America is totally unstoppable. I actually think that the Republicans are the party of jobs and the Democrats are the party of mobs.-Donald Trump, He brings America to dream big and to believe they are the best! But what we see is that he is also mob! Conclusions: 1. Donald John Trump is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelors degree in economics. He became president of his fathers real-estate business in 1971 and renamed it the Trump Organization. He expanded its operations to building and renovating skyscrapers, hotels, casinos, and golf courses and later started side ventures 2.Trump’s brutal, bawdy schlong penchant really makes people feel uncomfortable and dislike his personality. 3. What he shows is the antithetical dichotomy. His diocese only protects those believe his cowboy philosophy, Biden believe the teamwork goes better. Trump shout out to frighten away all the devil. Biden cooperate with all the weak together! 4. Wetikoized mind.’ Wetiko consciousness is in a permanent rage, therefore so is Woke, and then there is Woke inversion and contradiction. ‘Anti-fascists’ act like fascists because fascists and ‘antifascists’ are both Wetiko at work. Political parties act the same while claiming to be different for the same reason. Only who can be more aware of the Wetiko symdrom can be the leader. 5.We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow. 6.Biden’s external balance and Trump’s internal axis interact with each other on the point of refusing to cooperate with communist. 7. Trump claimed all the credit, his father is a German immigrant, he is a politically minded businessman, he blames others for his problems. He changes his parties to his need, his twice divorced marriage brings him ups and downs. His hotels and casinos went well to solve his financial crisis. He buried his playboy image and walked back many of his Reform Party claims for pro-choice and health care. His miracle is that even his situation fucks up but number goes up! Related links: 1. https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/donald-trump-quotes 2. https://www.storm.mg/article/3386932 4. http://military.people.com.cn/BIG5/n1/2020/0107/c1011-31537844.html 10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confidence_Man:_The_Making_of_Donald_Trump_and_the_Breaking_of_America 12. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maggie_Haberman 13. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/09/donald-trump-maggie-haberman-mar-a-lago/671510/ 14. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/07/10/who-will-win-2024-election-odds/70383288007/ 15.https://www.amazon.com/Wetiko-Healing-Mind-Virus-Plagues-World/dp/1644114100 16.https://wapo.st/46xPLsn
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