The author asserts that the book was neither written to cash in nor a desire for revenge, but an effort to let readers know that expecting anything pleasant on the alter of Donald’s hubris and willful ignorance will be at a huge cost. There are specific incidents and patterns that created the damaged man who occupied the coveted office, not once but twice. As the family members were often engaged in questionable business dealings, it allowed Donald’s failures to go unchecked. In fact, only a clinical psychologist could decipher such traits as causes of personality disorders.
Having learnt that ‘lying and cheating’ were legitimate business tactics, Donald built a reputation for success based on ‘bad loans, bad investments, and worse judgement’. Rather than the self-made billionaire he claims to be, he comes across as a beneficiary of his family’s immoral practices. “Donald had only his ability to spin father’s money to prop up an illusion”. Throughout the book, Mary expertly dismantles the myths around Donald’s success.
The book implores readers to recognize how personal histories shape public outcomes, drawing a direct link to Donald’s dangerous leadership. His fragile ego that must be bolstered every moment because he knows deep down that he is nothing of what he claims to be. Curiously, he makes his insecurities and vulnerabilities other peoples’ responsibility. Mary adds “that’s what sociopaths do, they co-opt others and use them toward their own ends — ruthlessly and efficiently, with no tolerance for dissent or resistance.”
Nothing is ever enough. Donald goes far beyond the garden-style-narcissism. He is not simply weak. He makes his insecurities and vulnerabilities other people's' responsibility. Mary’s candid exploration serves a warning. The powerful narrative urges readers to reflect how personal becomes political, and how it influences the global geopolitical landscape.
There is so much to infer from the narrative, which refers to traits such as chronic criminality, arrogance, and disregard for the rights of others. According to Mary, “Donald’s pathologies are so complex and his behavior so often inexplicable that coming up with an accurate and comprehensive diagnosis would require a full battery of neuropsychological tests.” Till such time such tests are conducted, casual dehumanization of people will continue across his dinner table. More so, he has surrounded himself with sycophants to ensure that his own mediocrity remains concealed.
But as the pressures of his position continues to mount, his mediocre delusions are emerging more starkly than ever before. Though his character flaws and aberrant behavior have been remarked upon and joked about, his hegemonic behavior is becoming unbearable at the global level. But he doesn’t seem to care. Instead, his approach is: “if he can in any way profit from your death, he’ll facilitate it, and then he’ll ignore the fact that you died.”
In her compelling narrative, Mary has no hesitation to postulate that ‘a second term to him would be the end of (American) democracy’.
by Mary L. Trump
Simon & Schuster, New York.
Extent: 225, Price: $17.99.
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