“This taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump’s shambolic tenure in office to date."
- Dwight Garner, The New York Times
Washington Post national investigative reporter Carol Leonnig and White House bureau chief Philip Rucker, both Pulitzer Prize winners, provide the definitive insider narrative of Donald Trump’s presidency
“I alone can fix it.” So proclaimed Donald J. Trump on July 21, 2016, accepting the Republican presidential nomination and promising to restore what he described as a fallen nation. Yet as he undertook the actual work of the commander in chief, it became nearly impossible to see beyond the daily chaos of scandal, investigation, and constant bluster. In fact, there were patterns to his behavior and that of his associates. The universal value of the Trump administration was loyalty—not to the country, but to the president himself—and Trump’s North Star was always the perpetuation of his own power.
With deep and unmatched sources throughout Washington, D.C., Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the forty-fifth president up close. Here, for the first time, certain officials who felt honor-bound not to divulge what they witnessed in positions of trust tell the truth for the benefit of history.
A peerless and gripping narrative, A Very Stable Genius not only reveals President Trump at his most unvarnished but shows how he tested the strength of America’s democracy and its common heart as a nation.
The Trump administration is a Carousel of Chaos. Trump tweets a thing, the news orgs pick it up, his staff scrambles to control it, or spin it, or lie about it - whatever the case may be. It's exhausting and frustrating and more than a little bit nuts. Trying to keep track of the last 3 years of this is wearying - which is why I'm glad Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig did all the hard work for us. And did it well.
The book is extremely readable, and lays everything out on the table. And they do it in true journalistic style - I was honestly surprised to find that a few times I felt sympathy that surprised me. It is obvious that they spoke to A LOT of people, because the accounts given are as complete as one could get without having actually been in the room. This is one of those books where we know the basic story, but filling in the blanks is more surprising, infuriating, and helpful than we could have guessed.
The scene at the Pentagon made me grit my teeth in anger (I'm former military, and my husband retired from the service. However, anyone who "supports the troops" should find it unacceptable. The whole thing about the Kurds made my physically ill. But the overall theme here is the casual carelessness with which Trump runs his administration. The ignorance of why there are processes, and the disdain with which he views everyone around him. It's not unknown, but seeing it here so starkly written, with conversations and pieces that were previously still hidden, is eye-opening and - frankly - terrifying.
This is a book that is required reading. It will be an important piece of the historical puzzle about this administration, and we should *all* understand where we stand as a country.
