I put lipstick on a pig. I feel a deep sense of remorse that I contributed to presenting Trump in a way that brought him wider attention and made him more appealing than he is. I genuinely believe that if Trump wins and gets the nuclear codes there is an excellent possibility it will lead to the end of civilisation…
So said Tony Schwartz this year, 29 years after he authored The Art Of The Deal.
Donald Trump now likes to pretend that he really was author of his 1987-vintage “autobiography”; in fact, beyond any reasonable doubt, it was written by its now-remorseful ghostwriter – Schwartz.
Almost certainly, nobody else who has written about “the Donald” has ever had such close access to him, over an extended period.
Schwartz’s 21st century detestation of Trump is neither new, nor an instance of twenty-twenty hindsight.
In 1985 and 1986 Schwarz spent a great many of his waking hours “camped out” with Trump, observing him at work, even listening in on his deal-making phone conversations.
But even as he worked to produce a Trump-boosting “autobiography” Schwartz kept a journal which expressed what he really thought:
Trump stands for many of the things I abhor: his willingness to run over people, the gaudy, tacky, gigantic obsessions, the absolute lack of interest in anything beyond power and money.
This post quotes from and refers to Donald Trump’s Ghostwriter Tells All, by Jane Mayer.
Her interview-based article is in the July 25 issue of The New Yorker.
I urge you to read all of it.