Donald Trump v. The United States: Inside the Struggle to Stop a President
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- Create Date：2023-01-15 00:19:35
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Michael S. Schmidt
- ISBN：1984854682
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Beryl Sortino
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Earned extra star because he is married to Nicolle Wallace。
Shari
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The most thorough book I have read on this time period so far。
Ivy
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A must read！
Zack Hodges
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 solid book。 Clear bias。。。 The author thinks Trump is evil and is upset trump "won" his war with the US。 They're kinda right but it felt like it muddied their writing。 solid book。 Clear bias。。。 The author thinks Trump is evil and is upset trump "won" his war with the US。 They're kinda right but it felt like it muddied their writing。 。。。more
Alejandro Morales
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"Mike's Trump Diaries" or "Will Don McGahn Be My Friend？" Schmidt's story - and that is what this is - is his Woodward/Bernstein moment where the New York Times' writer is 'Part Of The Story。' Sorry， Mr。 Schmidt: the story doesn't need you。 Reading about your journalistic activities and thoughts is really a huge distraction to the fascinating story of the corrupt Trump administration and how what passed for traditional Republican actors （most of them prove to gutless in the face of illegal and u "Mike's Trump Diaries" or "Will Don McGahn Be My Friend？" Schmidt's story - and that is what this is - is his Woodward/Bernstein moment where the New York Times' writer is 'Part Of The Story。' Sorry， Mr。 Schmidt: the story doesn't need you。 Reading about your journalistic activities and thoughts is really a huge distraction to the fascinating story of the corrupt Trump administration and how what passed for traditional Republican actors （most of them prove to gutless in the face of illegal and unethical activity） wallowed in the Trumpian mudpit。 。。。more
Dan
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Good workVery informative and well sourced reporting from one of BUT best reporters。 New insights into a very corrupt administration and president。
Mirko Kriskovic
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I thought this may explain the role of the FBI and the DNC in promoting the Russia hoax。 I thought the author may explain that Trump was a dangerous candidate that could walk the US into a global conflict with Russia in Syria or China， alas the author still carries on as if the Muller Report never happened！Matt Tahibi or Aaron Mate reporting is far more honest than this waste of time！Imagine how successful the blackmailing of Trump by Russia was that his administration imposed MORE SANCTIONS and I thought this may explain the role of the FBI and the DNC in promoting the Russia hoax。 I thought the author may explain that Trump was a dangerous candidate that could walk the US into a global conflict with Russia in Syria or China， alas the author still carries on as if the Muller Report never happened！Matt Tahibi or Aaron Mate reporting is far more honest than this waste of time！Imagine how successful the blackmailing of Trump by Russia was that his administration imposed MORE SANCTIONS and sold weapons to Ukraine （something that Obama never did）。Read only if you are a sucker for punishment or a member of the Russia Russia Religion！ I felt as if every chapter that I read was an insult to my intelligence， this BS belongs to 2016， not 2021。 One start because is a book and I was stupid enough to waste time with 400 pages of crap！ 。。。more
Dewayne Stark
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Reading this is like reviewing TV news of the last few years。 Reading about the orange haired clown is so depressing and he should be in jail。
Monica Moore
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OMG
Vijay Ravisankar
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A completely fascinating account of what went on just before the election and later after Trump got elected。 The book is majorly about the events happening in the white house especially Trump and his closest 'aids' from the viewpoint of white house counsel Donald Mcgahn， FBI director Comey and President Donald Trump， more particularly the former two。 If someone didn't know these people， this would seem like an excellent fiction book。 Lot of credit goes to the author， Schmidt， never lost the mome A completely fascinating account of what went on just before the election and later after Trump got elected。 The book is majorly about the events happening in the white house especially Trump and his closest 'aids' from the viewpoint of white house counsel Donald Mcgahn， FBI director Comey and President Donald Trump， more particularly the former two。 If someone didn't know these people， this would seem like an excellent fiction book。 Lot of credit goes to the author， Schmidt， never lost the momentum anywhere nor get repetitive。 The book starts a little slow （relative to the rest of the book） and then picks up a lot of pace the moment Trump gets elected as President when Comey starts investigating if the Russians were involved in election tampering and if Trump's party were an accomplice to that。 Comey's investigation first starts with the national security advisor Flynn which by itself rattles Trump but as time progresses， the investigation always seemed to eventually have an end point， was the president involved？！！ The relationship between Comey and Trump goes on a steady decline， a point after which special counsel Robert Mueller is appointed to investigate the case and this time， not just the people around the President but the president himself。 The book then focuses back and forth on the Mueller's investigation and McGahn's role in the investigation occasionally bringing back Comey。 The book then details on the way Trump decided to handle pardons， a power he holds as the president but one he chose to weild at his will sometime just to please celebrities like Stallone or Kim Kardashian and gain their support， something he felt he lacked during his presidential campaign。 Eventually the book goes on to talk about Mueller's findings and the possibility of issues with the findings among other things and how William Barr had twisted the reports to submit a 4 page summary to the Congress that seemed in favor of Trump。 The story on the Mueller report eventually fizzes out and quickly goes on to the scandal with Ukraine， this time Trump trying to meddle with the 2020 election。 This portion was cut short and was super brief and felt a little too fast， would've been nice to read more although it could've made the book way too long if it had any more details （the book is already a bit too long）。 Definitely fascinating read if you have no idea about what happened till date except superficially。 。。。more
Melissa
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I’ve read so many books about this lawless administration and yet this one still manages to add another layer。 Really dives into the McGahn angle。 So much happened during these four years you can’t remember half of it。 Comprehensive and well done。
Sarah
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Comet and McGahn make poor heroes…
Larry
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Donald J。 Trump is a grifter。 Donald J。 Trump is a criminal。 Donald J。 Trump is an idiot。“He’d doing stupid shit because he’s a stupid person。”These events were not new to me。 Read other books， lived them via news reports at the time。 But each book provides behind the scenes perspectives of said events。 This book had the inside track on FBI Director Comey and WH Counsel McGahn。 It was an illuminating read on that fat， vile orange evil man。
Judi Mayer
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Well researched and heavily reliant on the interviews from the published Mueller report， particularly those of Trump’s legal counsel and the Attorney they hired to protect their own futures。
Trina
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Like Michael’s reporting in NYT and for this book
Michael Turashoff
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All I can say is this book is a must read。 Without getting political I believe if half of the contents of this book are true we dodged a huge bullet。 Well researched， presented well and unable to out down。
Leon Baxter
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I thought the book started off strong。 I'd been reading a lot on the Trump administration， and this had some new insights， until it didn't。 A lot of the book seemed siphoned from Comey's book， A Higher Loyalty。 I don't mind reading some of what I already have read elsewhere， but too much seemed "borrowed。" I liked how Schmidt used dates and what was going to happen in the future （261 days until the end of theMueller Investigation）， but I didn't appreciate his reading of the book （When I say I re I thought the book started off strong。 I'd been reading a lot on the Trump administration， and this had some new insights， until it didn't。 A lot of the book seemed siphoned from Comey's book， A Higher Loyalty。 I don't mind reading some of what I already have read elsewhere， but too much seemed "borrowed。" I liked how Schmidt used dates and what was going to happen in the future （261 days until the end of theMueller Investigation）， but I didn't appreciate his reading of the book （When I say I read this， I really just listened to it）。 The reader was the author， so you figure he'd know how it should have been read， yet there were far too many awkward pauses put in that confused what sentences were intended to mean， and by the time I figured it out， I'd missed the context of the next sentence。 。。。more
Mel
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I would like to give this a 4。5 stars。 The author is one of the people who have led NYT coverage of the Trump administration。 This book pulls together the strands of coverage to offer a single narrative through the first impeachment organized chronologically。 Little is new but the organization puts a lot of information in context。 A reader wishing a solid review from the perspective of one covering the story will not find a better read。 There is a troubling indication about Mueller not being abl I would like to give this a 4。5 stars。 The author is one of the people who have led NYT coverage of the Trump administration。 This book pulls together the strands of coverage to offer a single narrative through the first impeachment organized chronologically。 Little is new but the organization puts a lot of information in context。 A reader wishing a solid review from the perspective of one covering the story will not find a better read。 There is a troubling indication about Mueller not being able cognitively sharp enough to handle the task。 Otherwise I think this a most positive contribution to record the period。 。。。more
Joanne
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Michael Schmidt is a two-time Pulitzer Prize–winning Washington correspondent for The New York Times， and has covered many breaking news stories over the past fifteen years。 It is evident in this book how hard he was willing to get those stories。 He has cultivated confidential sources and Washington insiders， including the FBI and the West Wing， and literally ran to be in the right place at the right time。 This book gives us the "fly on the wall" perspective of the Trump presidency from start to Michael Schmidt is a two-time Pulitzer Prize–winning Washington correspondent for The New York Times， and has covered many breaking news stories over the past fifteen years。 It is evident in this book how hard he was willing to get those stories。 He has cultivated confidential sources and Washington insiders， including the FBI and the West Wing， and literally ran to be in the right place at the right time。 This book gives us the "fly on the wall" perspective of the Trump presidency from start to finish， including the perspectives of those in the room， and those who tried to keep Trump， and the country， from going completely off the rails。 。。。more
Cathy
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It was OK。 I didn't really learn anything new， but people who haven't read as much as I have may get more out of it。 The big problem is that the title and cover are really false advertising。 The book is primarily about James Comey and Don McGahn。 And I expected more insider information and new reporting from this reporter。 It was OK。 I didn't really learn anything new， but people who haven't read as much as I have may get more out of it。 The big problem is that the title and cover are really false advertising。 The book is primarily about James Comey and Don McGahn。 And I expected more insider information and new reporting from this reporter。 。。。more
Judy Speedy
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Takes a while to adapt to Michael Schmidt's level of writing， but this is indeed a worthwhile read that explains what was behind some of actions and attitudes of President Trump。 Takes a while to adapt to Michael Schmidt's level of writing， but this is indeed a worthwhile read that explains what was behind some of actions and attitudes of President Trump。 。。。more
Mike
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Another great book to shed light on one of the worst American presidents
Robert P。 Hoffman
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I almost did not read this book thinking we do not need another book about the Trump administration。 I am glad I read it because it is a welcome addition to the books that have been written about Trump。First， the writer is exceptionally skilled in telling complicated stories。Second， the writer， unlike many other writers， does not focus on the daily outrages committed by Trump but instead talks about his abuse of the Constitution and the legal system。 He demonstrates that Trump was ignorant of ma I almost did not read this book thinking we do not need another book about the Trump administration。 I am glad I read it because it is a welcome addition to the books that have been written about Trump。First， the writer is exceptionally skilled in telling complicated stories。Second， the writer， unlike many other writers， does not focus on the daily outrages committed by Trump but instead talks about his abuse of the Constitution and the legal system。 He demonstrates that Trump was ignorant of many laws， contemptuous of the ones he understood， and felt no remorse over anything he did。 Third， the writer lays out why it is clear that Trump obstructed justice and why he should have been impeached for what he did before the Ukraine call。We get many new insights and another reminder of how dangerous a second term of Trump would have been。 I wonder when spineless Republicans will finally cut Trump off。 I do not believe he or his hideous children or his hideous former aides or his hideous daughter in law will have successful political futures。 I hope that in a few years they will be in jail， in hiding， or revealed to be the complete failures that they are。 。。。more
Book
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Donald Trump v。 The United States: Inside the Struggle to Stop a President by Michael S。 Schmidt“Donald Trump v。 The United States” tells the early-day struggles to contain a reckless， authoritarian president。 Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter， Michael S。 Schmidt takes the reader through the tumultuous behind-the-scenes struggles to contain a president who knew no bounds。 This detailed 423-page includes seven chapters broken out into four acts。 Positives:1。tA well-written， extensive Donald Trump v。 The United States: Inside the Struggle to Stop a President by Michael S。 Schmidt“Donald Trump v。 The United States” tells the early-day struggles to contain a reckless， authoritarian president。 Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter， Michael S。 Schmidt takes the reader through the tumultuous behind-the-scenes struggles to contain a president who knew no bounds。 This detailed 423-page includes seven chapters broken out into four acts。 Positives:1。tA well-written， extensively researched book。 2。tAn interesting topic， the story of the individuals who undertook the mission to stop a reckless president who they feared may damage the country and the presidency。3。tIn the Prologue Schmidt clearly establishes the purpose of the book， “This book tells the story of a few individuals who were compelled to confront the most powerful leader in the world， uncertain whether he was acting in the interest of the country， his ego， his family business， or Russia。 Through their eyes and ears， we observe an epic struggle to restrain an unbound president。”4。tThe book is organized as if it were a play: four acts， each act is further divided into chapters and subchapters and time stamped。 There are a limited number of people involved in this book thus making it a lot easier to follow。 Schmidt tells the story calmly and methodically as he pieces the puzzle together。5。tThe critical role of White House counsel McGahn in this story。 “In fact， McGahn had accepted the White House job on the condition that he essentially serve as a committee of one to determine whom Trump would nominate to the federal bench， including district， appeals， and Supreme Court vacancies。”6。tDoes a good job of describing the main character traits of the main players involved。 7。tDescribes the criminal investigation of Hillary Clinton。 “With this short and cryptic communication， the FBI had opened a criminal investigation into whether the leading Democratic candidate for president， Hillary Clinton， had mishandled classified information during her tenure as secretary of state through her use of a private email account。 The investigation would be code-named Midyear Exam。”8。tMany examples of Trump’s reckless behavior。 “But the headline of the day was clear: here was the Republican Party’s nominee encouraging—soliciting—Moscow’s interference in his race against Clinton。”9。tThe Steele dossier。 “Steele reached out to David Corn—a reporter for Mother Jones—and told him he had provided the FBI with a dossier of memos that tried to prove that Russia had been supporting Trump and cultivating him as an asset for years。”10。tThe election surprise。 “In Trump’s case， on Election Day the country knew that he had discussed grabbing women by their genitals， had filed for bankruptcy six times， lied almost daily about many aspects of his own life and business， and conducted himself like no other modern presidential candidate as he made racist comments on the campaign trail and even attacked the family of an American service member who died in Iraq。 And despite the voters knowing all of that， he still won。”11。tDescribes the 2016 Election conclusion。 “In an Oval Office meeting with Obama， Comey and the other intelligence chiefs detailed their sourcing methods and laid out their conclusions: The Russians had meddled in the 2016 election to damage Clinton， benefit Trump， and undermine Americans’ faith in democratic processes。 Most significantly， Putin approved and directed the complex operation。”12。tTrump’s initial days as president。 “Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller were pushing a travel ban by executive order that concentrated on closing travel from predominantly Muslim countries， a measure that McGahn knew was legally dubious。”13。tTrump’s philosophy， “To him， the world was a series of quid pro quo arrangements， and the relationship at hand demanded absolute loyalty from his nominee。 How could Gorsuch—a man he had less than two weeks before nominated to a lifetime appointment on the nation’s highest court—criticize him like that？”14。tThe Flynn matter。 “But under pressure， Spicer came apart。 In the course of the forty-five-minute briefing， the press secretary essentially discarded the notes that McGahn offered him， instead delivering a multitude of false statements to the press。 McGahn and his office counted fourteen lies or mischaracterizations in Spicer’s remarks about how the White House handled the Flynn matter， spinning a narrative that made the administration appear far more on top of the situation than it had been。”15。tTrump’s limited knowledge exposed。 “Trump believed that the president could do whatever the president wanted， and he had no grasp of the concept that the founders had set up the government for the three branches to share power。 While there were certain executive actions Trump could take unilaterally， he often needed to work with Congress， and the courts had the power to curtail executive actions they saw as illegal。”16。tTweety bird。 “For McGahn， the tweets fit a familiar pattern with Trump: An issue （like Sessions and recusal） would enrage him， and a series of tweets afterward would be connected to that rage， even as they often made the situation worse。”17。tThe rage of Trump。 “The coverage—and the prospect that Trump himself might be under investigation—enraged Trump。 He had made his closest political ally， Jeff Sessions， the attorney general， and Sessions had recused himself from the investigation。 Comey had rebuffed Trump’s overtures for loyalty， ignored the president’s request to stop investigating Flynn， and， most important， refused to say publicly what he had told Trump in private: that the president was not under investigation。”18。tThe book revolves strongly around the Mueller report and McGahn’s insights。 “When Vogel published a story based on what he had overheard， it erased any doubt in McGahn’s mind that the president and his lawyers were setting him up to take the fall。 McGahn settled on his own strategy of cooperation with Mueller’s prosecutors。 He had to make sure that Mueller’s team learned about what was going on inside the White House from him， before they found it out from anyone else。 McGahn had to show them that he had nothing to hide。”19。tThe broken White House exposed。 “The White House came under intense scrutiny for not adhering to the norms of previous administrations in dispensing security clearances。”20。tTrump。 “By that time， it was well known around the White Hose that Trump was not much of a reader， especially when it came to detailed and lengthy documents， like the memos。 He preferred that their contents be summarized for him in a short conversation。 The president had not read one book during his time in office。”21。tThe Mueller report。 “In tortured fashion， the report declined to say whether any of these incidents actually amounted to a violation of the law， leaving it to the legal experts to play prosecutor。 Out of the incidents， the experts said， at least four were clear-cut examples of Trump breaking the law。”22。tAn Epilogue that introduces the actions the led to Trump’s impeachment。 “The whistleblower had accomplished what everyone before him had failed to do。 He had stopped President Trump in his tracks and had him on the path to being impeached。”Negatives:1。tRedundancy。2。tIf you follow politics as closely as I have there really isn’t anything new here other than how some of the information is obtained。 3。tNotes not linked from within the narrative。4。tTo complete the playbill style that book provides， A Cast of Characters would have been welcomed。5。tAt 400 pages， it will require your time。In summary， this is a professionally written book。 It’s easy to follow and provides an accurate and detailed account of his counsel’s struggle to keep Trump bound to the law。 In many respects this is a clash between Trump’s reckless and authoritarian behavior and the quest to keep him from destroying his presidency and the country。 A bit redundant and very little that is not known but worth the read。 I recommend it。Further suggestions: “Too Much and Never Enough” by Mary L。 Trump， “Donald Trump and His Assault on Truth: The President's Falsehoods， Misleading Claims and Flat-Out Lies” by Glenn Kessler， “The Room Where It Happened” by John Bolton， “Everything Trump Touches Dies: A Republican Strategist Gets Real About the Worst President Ever” by Rick Wilson， “Fear” by Bob Woodward， “Fire and Fury” by Michael Wolff， “Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic” by David Frum， “A Higher Loyalty” by James Comey， “Facts and Fears” by James R。 Clapper， “How Democracies Die” by Steven Levitsky， “It’s Even Worse Than You Think” by David Cay Johnston， “How the Right Lost Its Mind” by Charles J。 Sykes， “One Nation After Trump” by E。J。 Dionne Jr。， and “Democracy in Chains” by Nancy MacLean。 。。。more
Umaymah
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Is it possible to create extra stars？ As I read along I found myself googling Michael Schmidt。 I wanted to know everything about him， what drives him and what makes him such a damn good reporter， not just good， an amazing one。 It became less about the story and more about the doggedness and skill of the author for me。 He covered this book from every angle possible and left no leads unpursued。 I'm awed at the depth of research that went into this and most of all the coherence of the story。 At thi Is it possible to create extra stars？ As I read along I found myself googling Michael Schmidt。 I wanted to know everything about him， what drives him and what makes him such a damn good reporter， not just good， an amazing one。 It became less about the story and more about the doggedness and skill of the author for me。 He covered this book from every angle possible and left no leads unpursued。 I'm awed at the depth of research that went into this and most of all the coherence of the story。 At this time Trump has lost the election and Congress has just voted on the constitutionality of the second impeachment trial。 Whatever Donald J Trump's presidency becomes or not， it will certainly remain in the annals of American history whichever way it turns out。Edit: The presidency of Donald Trump was like a scandal-a-thon。 It's best to clarify that this book covers the allegations of Russian interference with the US elections of 2016， the Ukrainian Debacle which lead to the impeachment of the President。 The Saudi Arabian angle， the story of Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen is briefly glosser over as with so many other scandals。 I took a break in between to watch the @showtimeDocumentary The Comey Rules。 That helped me have a visual representation of much that I had read and was going to read。 。。。more
Ken Frankel
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There is some premonition what will happen with a powerful president who flaunts the rule of norms and even rules normally followed because of the constitution， not one’s own political fortune。
Meggan V。 Crowley
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Michael Schmidt is a great reporter。 This is one of the most comprehensive books on dumbass deadly donald。
Cassandra Davis Ramon
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I’ve read a number of books detailing the Trump presidency， and I have read the Mueller report。 Unlike many of the other contemporaneous accounts and inside looks， this book focuses on the timeline of the Muller report and related occurrences。 This makes it easier to follow than the books trying to capture other details of the administration （China， North Korea， etc）。 So it is less comprehensive in scope， but feels like a fuller account because of this clarity。
Jane Benson
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Amendment。 Book for political junkies Michel Schmidt deserves the Puiitzer for this book。 There were so many questions in my mind about the Trump era and this answers many othem than God for the Free Press and the First Amendent。
Joel
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