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Overview
Sean Spicer
'Psst, want a copy of the Trumpedia audiobook? I taped the whole thing.'
Michael Cohen
'The pages have good people on both sides.'
Steve Bannon
'The president misspoke-he meant that he wouldn't like to read this book.'
Sarah Huckabee Sanders
' '
Jared Kushner
'Every word is a lie, it's all true, and Trump should be locked up because he's innocent.'
Rudy Giuliani
'Trumpedia makes me proud to be the wife of the first African-American president. Be best!'
Melania Trump
Covering Trumpian essentials like Mar-a-Lago, Kim Jong-Un, The Mooch, 'covfefe', Miss Universe, fast food and of course Vladimir Putin, among other trending topics, Trumpedia is packed with the 45th president's least favourite things - facts and jokes.
Featuring his unlikely successes in television, wrestling and politics, along with disasters like Trump Vodka, Trump 'University' and Trump Child Incarceration, Trumpedia is a roller coaster ride from the absurd to the ridiculous to the genuinely disturbing. It's just like following Trump on Twitter.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781760637583 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Allen & Unwin |
| Publication date: | 09/26/2018 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 240 |
| Sales rank: | 770,607 |
| File size: | 6 MB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Access Hollywood
Access Hollywood is the television program on which Donald Trump made a guest appearance when he was recorded boasting of his penchant for sexual assault, and how when you're a star, women let you do it. The show's host, Billy Bush, was fired for his apparent encouragement of Trump's behaviour and, due to the scandal, became the only male member of the Bush family who has not run for president — yet.
For his part, Trump learned that the other thing they let you do when you're a star is rapidly put a huge scandal behind you, and go on to grab the presidency as well.
CHAPTER 2America First
To the extent to which Donald Trump has an internally consistent foreign policy, it can be summarised via the slogan America First.
Trump maintains that the country boasting the world's strongest and wealthiest economy, and unchallenged military might, is nevertheless treated unfairly by the rest of the world. It must therefore renegotiate its relationships even with its closest allies like Canada, with its irritatingly attractive prime minister, and the EU, with its irritatingly German Angela Merkel.
History of the term
Like 'Make America Great Again', 'America First' is a phrase with a long history in American politics, to which Trump is oblivious. In the early nineteenth century, white-hooded Klansmen and women marched with banners demanding 'America First', and the phrase is still used by KKK Grand Wizard and Trump supporter David Duke.
In his 1916 re-election campaign, Woodrow Wilson used the isolationist slogan 'He kept us out of War. America First.' After winning re-election, Wilson ordered American troops to fight anyway, and went on to found the League of Nations, meaning that he ultimately made 'America First' his lowest priority.
The slogan was adopted by former Nixon staffer and far-right ideologue Pat Buchanan when he ran for president three times during the 1990s. His rants against unfair treatment from trading partners like Japan, and warnings about white America being swamped by Hispanics, presaged Trump's own campaign, meaning that Buchanan used 'America First' first.
Most recently, Trump used the phrase in his inaugural address, saying that 'from this moment on, it's going to be America First'. In just the first half of his first term, Trump has already had more success than any of his rhetorical predecessors in delivering on the 'America First' vision of a more blinkered and selfish America.
Meaning under Trump
Donald Trump's approach to politics is transactional — for him 'America First' involves treating America as an extension of himself, and consequently demanding special treatment. Just as Trump demands tax concessions from local authorities on all of his construction projects, he also believes that the 'very unfair' norms of the global order need not apply to the country he runs.
Whether the subject is a trade deal, a US base overseas, or even America's Cold War-winning leadership of NATO, previous standards no longer apply. For Trump, it's weak and foolish for America to take any action just because it seems right or benevolent. But once he's on board, his praise will be lavish, no matter how desperate and starving his new friend's citizenry may be, or how many uncles he might have killed with anti-aircraft guns.
Policy implications
Some of the policy changes deriving from Trump's America First stance, and their effects, are as follows:
• reconsider NAFTA — antagonise America's neighbours and major customers
• impose a travel ban — antagonise Muslims, and boost terrorist recruitment
• pull America out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership — encourage allies to club together without America
• impose tariffs in key industries and for major trading partners — start a trade war that devastates many American businesses
• threaten to pull out of America's overseas bases — establish a protection racket
• pull out of the Paris climate accord — cut off America's nose to spite its face, then not be able to breathe clean air through the hole where its nose once was
• pull America out of the Iran deal — replace a deal discouraging Iran from developing nuclear weapons with no disincentive whatsoever
• taunt and threaten North Korea — play chicken with a nuclear power led by an inexperienced, erratic, unpredictable leader, who will nevertheless outnegotiate Trump when they sit down for a summit
• recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital — put the pet issue of major Republican donors in America First
Family exception
America First is the political equivalent of the rule by which Trump has always conducted his business: 'Family First'. This earlier principle overrides America First where there is conflict between the two objectives, such as when the Trump Organization or Kushner Companies has a business deal involving state parties.
For instance, government ethics experts* have expressed concern about the link between a Chinese government-owned company helping finance a Trump hotel and golf project in Indonesia, and the president's abrupt about-face on his sanctions against the Chinese smartphone company ZTE, about which he tweeted 'Too many jobs in China lost', displaying a hitherto unseen concern for a competitor's employment market.
Also, Trump's Family First priority does not apply to his sexual partners, as consecutive spouses have found to their surprise and disappointment.
CHAPTER 3The Apprentice
The Apprentice was a reality television show in which contestants vied for celebrity and wealth, while avoiding victory in the overall competition so as not to waste a year of their lives working for Donald Trump.
The only venture of Trump's career to engage a majority of the American population, The Apprentice rated spectacularly well despite being a lengthy infomercial for the Trump Organization's underwhelming products and services.
At the climax of each episode, the losing team faced Trump and his advisers in the 'boardroom', where he would select a contestant to be eliminated with the catchphrase 'You're fired.' This soon became an iconic pop culture phrase and known as the quote most associated with Trump himself, replacing 'We're bankrupt.'
Origins
When Donald Trump was first approached by reality television legend Mark Burnett about appearing in a new show, he was reluctant — he told friends that reality television was 'for the bottom-feeders of society'. But after being reminded he had run casinos in Atlantic City, Trump realised it was a perfect fit.
Belatedly, it dawned on Trump that not only would he be paid to host and co-produce the program, but that the tasks he assigned could promote his businesses on prime-time television. But even this intensive publicity wasn't enough to make a success of Trump's casino, steak, necktie or vodka enterprises. If only he could have sought advice from someone who knew how to run a successful conglomerate — a business guru who could have taken Trump on as an apprentice.
As the seasons progressed, Ivanka began starring in many of the climactic boardroom scenes, winning fans and providing a platform to launch her own branded goods. Eric and Donald Junior were also tolerated occasionally.
The Celebrity Apprentice
When the format began to grow stale, Burnett and Trump decided to launch a celebrity version — The Celebrity Apprentice — which revived interest in the series. This edition ultimately filmed more seasons than the original, as each season introduced new contestants more successful and widely liked than Donald Trump himself.
The New Celebrity Apprentice
After Trump launched his presidential campaign with a fusillade of racist comments, NBC fired him and rebooted the series as The New Celebrity Apprentice, hosted by movie star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Arnie replaced Trump's 'You're fired' with his own catchphrase —'You're terminated' — because as a business mentor, he deemed it best to remind his protégés of his role as a terrifying killer robot from the future.
However, Trump couldn't resist repeatedly mocking Schwarzenegger — who'd criticised his divisive campaign — for his lower ratings, even though Trump was supposedly busy being president at the time, and also one of the show's executive producers and therefore literally invested in its success. But Trump's scornful tweets backfired, as they provided Schwarzenegger with an excuse for the reboot's poor ratings, and a reason to resign after one season. What's more, although his time as a host had been relatively unsuccessful, Schwarzenegger is not only a bigger name in the entertainment industry, but was far more effective at governing.
Among the more notable contestants to participate in the show's celebrity version were:
• Piers Morgan — The British tabloid-editor-turned-talk-show-host won the first season by being as aggressive and generally unpleasant as Trump himself, all too easy for Morgan.
• Stephen Baldwin — Although one Baldwin brother impersonates Trump on SNL, this lesser Baldwin is a die-hard supporter of the president, while their brother Billy has accused Trump of hitting on his wife. It's a complicated family. Baldwin made a Christian skateboarding DVD called Livin' It, which contains what he terms a 'real message about life'. Apparently, he has distributed in excess of 100,000.
• Nadia Comaneci — The gymnast who famously scored a perfect ten from the judges at the Montreal Olympics somehow found herself being judged by a slob with a comb-over.
• Vincent Pastore — Famous for his Sopranos role as Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero, Pastore was lucky to get through The Celebrity Apprentice without being grabbed by the future president.
• Tito Ortiz — The mixed martial arts legend had no chance of victory given his Mexican ancestry, and was deported from Trump Tower in week nine.
• Omarosa Manigault-Newman — Despite being fired in no fewer than three seasons of The Apprentice, she would later be shocked to find working in Trump's White House less than enjoyable.
• Joan Rivers — Rivers won season two of The Celebrity Apprentice thanks to deploying comic insults that were even better than Trump's.
• Khloé Kardashian — The mandatory reality series Kardashian.
• Rod Blagojevich — This former Illinois governor was impeached and removed from office for corruption, but welcomed onto a top-rating television program nevertheless. Trump may soon ask him for tips.
• Sharon Osbourne — Sharon was initially the hot favourite for season three thanks to her experience with handling older men in the early stages of dementia.
• La Toya Jackson — The available Jackson.
• David Cassidy — Also available.
• Meat Loaf — Trump was always going to invite the man named after his favourite dish to appear on his show.
• Debbie Gibson — The 1980s teen pop star has spent most of this millennium appearing on reality shows. In terms of prominence, her Apprentice appearance ranks below Dancing With The Stars, but above Skating With Celebrities.
• Arsenio Hall — Hall won season five, a rare instance of an African-American emerging a victor from any process managed by Donald Trump. After this successful return to television, The Arsenio Hall Show was re-commissioned, then re-cancelled, leading many to think it might have been kinder if he'd remained in involuntary retirement.
• Trace Adkins — The winner of season six, which was populated by contestants from previous seasons because there were no remaining celebrities in America willing to appear on The Celebrity Apprentice.
• Leeza Gibbons — Whoever she is, she won season seven, Trump's final season as host.
• Boy George, Carson Kressley from the original Queer Eye,Jon Lovitz from SNL,Vince Neil from Mötley Crüe and Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi from Jersey Shore were the least obscure stars to appear on The New Celebrity Apprentice, collective proof that the poor ratings for season eight were hardly Arnold Schwarzenegger's fault.
Donald J. Trump Presents The Ultimate Merger
This spin-off series from 2010 featured one of the most famous Apprentice contestants, Omarosa Manigault-Newman, who had been portrayed as a villain in the original Apprentice and The Celebrity Apprentice. Over eight episodes, twelve contestants competed for Omarosa's affections, following the unlikely premise that anybody would take relationship advice from Donald Trump. At the end of the season, Omarosa was left with a 'winner', who was then also eliminated because he was still legally married. Consequently, there was no merger, let alone an ultimate one.
Legacy
Trump's time on The Apprentice was key to the successful reinvention of his public image after a period of severe financial difficulty in the 1990s. Trump's persona from the show — tough, decisive, straight-talking, with impeccable business judgement and a huge pile of assets — formed the image that he successfully exploited in his campaign, even though it was largely fictitious.
The reports of Trump's sexist behaviour on set — frequent comments about female contestants' breast size and demeaning speculation about which of them he wanted to have sex with — are also very much in keeping with Trump's public persona. He has been accused of sexual assault by former Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos. Trump denies any wrongdoing, as he does regarding the claims of eighteen other women who have so far come forward — but via these #MeToo accusations, despite changing careers, Trump still has much in common with some of the best-known entertainers and media executives in the world.
CHAPTER 4The Art of the Deal
Trump: The Art of the Deal is itself the best deal Trump ever made. It topped the New York Times bestseller list for thirteen weeks, has sold more than a million copies, and Trump didn't even have to write a word.
Trump's 'co-writer'— more correctly, the author, Tony Schwartz — assembled it by interviewing Trump, and then, when his subject got bored with the process (after a few minutes), listened in to his calls (with Trump's consent) and cobbled the fragments of Trumpspeak he heard into a coherent narrative. Schwartz says if he wrote the book today, it would be called The Sociopath.
The book concerns Trump's childhood in Queens, his first projects in Brooklyn and his early work in Manhattan. Perhaps the most famous part of the book is Trump's statement that he uses 'truthful hyperbole', which is 'an innocent form of exaggeration — and … a very effective form of promotion'. He takes the same approach to politics, except nowadays his hyperbole isn't truthful.
Trump says that The Art of the Deal is his second-favourite book after the Bible, although it's not clear that he has read either.
CHAPTER 5Baby Trump blimp
A blimp portraying Donald Trump as a six-metre-high baby, with a scowl and a mobile phone clutched in his tiny hands, was flown in London's Parliament Square during Trump's first visit to the city as president in July 2018. Tens of thousands of protesters attended, though the Trump White House — for the first time ever — sought to downplay crowd numbers.
The blimp was authorised by London's mayor, Sadiq Khan, whom Trump has criticised on multiple occasions, because, as Trump is learning with tariffs, what goes around comes around.
Trump reacted negatively to the blimp, saying 'I guess when they put out blimps to make me feel unwelcome, no reason for me to go to London.' As a result, dozens of other cities have asked the artist Matt Bonner if they can purchase a Trump blimp of their own to guard against future visits. New York City Council has asked about installing a permanent flotilla outside Trump Tower.
CHAPTER 6Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae Baldwin III is a writer, producer, comedian and actor. He is the eldest Baldwin brother, and well known for an extensive career in both film and television. He has won three Primetime Emmy Awards, three more than Donald Trump, although it must be noted that the most recent Emmy was for playing Donald Trump.
CHAPTER 7Steve Bannon
White House chief strategist and senior counsellor to the president, 20 January 2017 — 18 August 2018
Stephen Kevin Mephistopheles Bannon has been a media executive, political adviser, investment banker, movie producer, naval officer, de facto president of the United States, and would-be puppetmaster of America's transformation into a white nationalist oligarchic hellscape modelled on the movie Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
Bannon was Donald Trump's final campaign manager, and became his chief strategist in the White House. Tensions arose, however, when Bannon was portrayed by the source Trump believes is the planet's most authoritative signifier of status, Time magazine, as 'The Great Manipulator', because he was the only person in the Trump administration with any concrete policy ideas. (The term 'concrete' is apt because the adoption of these ideas immediately caused Trump's approval ratings to sink to the bottom of the Potomac River.)
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Trumpedia"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Dominic Knight.
Excerpted by permission of Allen & Unwin.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Legal disclaimer,
Note to readers,
Access Hollywood,
America First,
The Apprentice,
The Art of the Deal,
Baby Trump blimp,
Alec Baldwin,
Steve Bannon,
John Barron,
Barron Trump,
Battery theory,
Bill of Rights,
Birtherism,
Cabinet,
Cameos by Donald Trump,
Trump casinos,
Charlottesville rally,
Christian right,
Hillary Clinton,
Roy Cohn,
James Comey,
Covfefe,
Stormy Daniels,
Deep state,
Diet Coke,
Donald Junior and Eric Trump,
Donald Trump,
Electoral college,
Empire State Building,
Environmental Protection Agency,
Fake news,
Fake News Awards,
Family separation policy,
Fashion and Donald Trump,
Trump Foundation,
Fox & Friends,
Goldman Sachs,
Trump Golf,
Hope HIcks,
HIV and HPV,
Trump International Hotel, Washington, D.C.,
Ivana Trump,
Ivanka Trump,
Jerusalem,
Kim Jong-Un,
John Kelly,
KFC,
Kleptocracy,
Jared Kushner,
Make America Great Again,
Marla Maples,
Mar-a-Lago,
Jim Mattis,
McDonald's,
Melania Trump,
Miss Universe,
Trump Mortgage,
Robert Mueller,
Narcissistic personality disorder,
The Trump Network,
Non-disclosure agreement,
Nuclear football,
Trump Organization,
Pardon power,
Mike Pence,
Reince Priebus,
Vladimir Putin,
Real News Update,
Republican primaries, 2016,
Sarah Huckabee Sanders,
Anthony Scaramucci,
Shithole,
Trump Shuttle,
Sean Spicer,
Steele Dossier,
Supreme Court,
3 Doors Down,
Tiffany Trump,
Rex Tillerson,
Trump Tower,
Twitter,
Trump University,
Trump Vodka,
Voter fraud,
The Wall,
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West,
Witch hunt,
WWE,