Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America
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- Create Date：2023-01-16 09:51:42
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- Author：Maggie Haberman
- ISBN：0008470197
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Summary
From the Pulitzer-Prize-winning New York Times reporter who has defined Donald J。 Trump's presidency like no other journalist: a magnificent and disturbing reckoning that moves beyond simplistic caricature， chronicling his rise in New York City to his tortured post-presidency and his potential comeback。
Few journalists working today have covered Donald Trump more extensively than Maggie Haberman。 And few understand him and his motivations better。 Now， demonstrating her majestic command of this story， Haberman reveals in full the depth of her understanding of the 45th president himself， and of what the Trump phenomenon means。
Interviews with hundreds of sources and numerous interviews over the years with Trump himself portray a complicated and often contradictory historical figure。 Capable of kindness but relying on casual cruelty as it suits his purposes。 Pugnacious。 Insecure。 Lonely。 Vindictive。 Menacing。 Smarter than his critics contend and colder and more calculating than his allies believe。 A man who embedded himself in popular culture， galvanizing support for a run for high office that he began preliminary spadework for 30 years ago， to ultimately become a president who pushed American democracy to the brink。
The through-line of Trump’s life and his presidency is the enduring question of what is in it for him or what he needs to say to survive short increments of time in the pursuit of his own interests。
Confidence Man is also， inevitably， about the world that produced such a singular character， giving rise to his career and becoming his first stage。 It is also about a series of relentlessly transactional relationships。 The ones that shaped him most were with girlfriends and wives， with Roy Cohn， with George Steinbrenner， with Mike Tyson and Don King and Roger Stone， with city and state politicians like Robert Morgenthau and Rudy Giuliani， with business partners， with prosecutors， with the media， and with the employees who toiled inside what they commonly called amongst themselves the “Trump Disorganization。”
That world informed the one that Trump tried to recreate while in the White House。 All of Trump’s behavior as President had echoes in what came before。 In this revelatory and newsmaking book， Haberman brings together the events of his life into a single mesmerizing work。 It is the definitive account of one of the most norms-shattering and consequential eras in American political history。
Few journalists working today have covered Donald Trump more extensively than Maggie Haberman。 And few understand him and his motivations better。 Now， demonstrating her majestic command of this story， Haberman reveals in full the depth of her understanding of the 45th president himself， and of what the Trump phenomenon means。
Interviews with hundreds of sources and numerous interviews over the years with Trump himself portray a complicated and often contradictory historical figure。 Capable of kindness but relying on casual cruelty as it suits his purposes。 Pugnacious。 Insecure。 Lonely。 Vindictive。 Menacing。 Smarter than his critics contend and colder and more calculating than his allies believe。 A man who embedded himself in popular culture， galvanizing support for a run for high office that he began preliminary spadework for 30 years ago， to ultimately become a president who pushed American democracy to the brink。
The through-line of Trump’s life and his presidency is the enduring question of what is in it for him or what he needs to say to survive short increments of time in the pursuit of his own interests。
Confidence Man is also， inevitably， about the world that produced such a singular character， giving rise to his career and becoming his first stage。 It is also about a series of relentlessly transactional relationships。 The ones that shaped him most were with girlfriends and wives， with Roy Cohn， with George Steinbrenner， with Mike Tyson and Don King and Roger Stone， with city and state politicians like Robert Morgenthau and Rudy Giuliani， with business partners， with prosecutors， with the media， and with the employees who toiled inside what they commonly called amongst themselves the “Trump Disorganization。”
That world informed the one that Trump tried to recreate while in the White House。 All of Trump’s behavior as President had echoes in what came before。 In this revelatory and newsmaking book， Haberman brings together the events of his life into a single mesmerizing work。 It is the definitive account of one of the most norms-shattering and consequential eras in American political history。
Reviews
Rob Volpe
，
A fellow passenger on a recent flight noticed I was reading this book。 He commented that he had started it but ended up stopping， didn't want to give more energy in his life to DJT。 I felt similarly but decided to keep reading and I'm glad I did。What I liked about the book was how Haberman didn't focus all the attention on the big moments of "outrage" of the Trump administration。 It's all in there and there is some great behind the scenes moments， but there are also plenty of other behind the sc A fellow passenger on a recent flight noticed I was reading this book。 He commented that he had started it but ended up stopping， didn't want to give more energy in his life to DJT。 I felt similarly but decided to keep reading and I'm glad I did。What I liked about the book was how Haberman didn't focus all the attention on the big moments of "outrage" of the Trump administration。 It's all in there and there is some great behind the scenes moments， but there are also plenty of other behind the scenes moments from lesser and everyday moments。 I found those equally insightful。And her entire premise， looking at the psychology and behavior of Trump from his childhood through the presidency as well as the people that shaped him， was really interesting in terms of how similar it all was。Well done！（oh and don't worry about the length， the last 150 pages or so are notes which you can skip）。 。。。more
Elana
，
I knew much of the general information， but wanted to see more details behind some of the events。 There were a few things I learned。 Lots of names of officials and staff which got heavy and overwhelming。 It was well-written。 Interesting assessment and opinion on what he's done to America。 Certainly did NOT make America great。 I knew much of the general information， but wanted to see more details behind some of the events。 There were a few things I learned。 Lots of names of officials and staff which got heavy and overwhelming。 It was well-written。 Interesting assessment and opinion on what he's done to America。 Certainly did NOT make America great。 。。。more
P。A。 Welch
，
I have followed the career of Trump， especially since his attempt to take the property of Vera Coking。 He has proven over time that he is a most horrid human being。 Haberman， having had access to Trump for decades， reinforced my loathing for this man。 She wrote an excellent account of his time on Earth。 Much of what she wrote is backed up by other individuals， some by her own recordings。 I have no reason to doubt any of the stories that she wrote about。 Since the publication of her book， many of I have followed the career of Trump， especially since his attempt to take the property of Vera Coking。 He has proven over time that he is a most horrid human being。 Haberman， having had access to Trump for decades， reinforced my loathing for this man。 She wrote an excellent account of his time on Earth。 Much of what she wrote is backed up by other individuals， some by her own recordings。 I have no reason to doubt any of the stories that she wrote about。 Since the publication of her book， many of the people that she quoted have said "yes， I saw that" or "Yes， I said that"。 As an author， there were times when she was writing about an incident， seemed to get off on a tangent and had to get back on point。 That was somewhat distracting。 。。。more
Dan
，
yet another hit piece that amounts to out-dated out of context quotes。 i can't believe people still read/ and believe this junk。 yet another hit piece that amounts to out-dated out of context quotes。 i can't believe people still read/ and believe this junk。 。。。more
Sarah
，
The fact that the country is still intact is astounding。
Tom Oneil
，
The definitive Trump book。 It traces his roots in New York City real estate development and the casino industry in Atlantic City as a window into his behavior as President。 All the traits we saw in his term in the White House were there decades ago and Haberman probes them more deeply than any other author。 If you read only one book on Trump， this is the one to get。
Rt
，
A bit Trumped out but this is well told and does cover earlier， formative years that other biographies have not
Ddelmoni
，
DNF
Jelle Mostien
，
Een lijvig boek om je door te worstelen。Journalistiek prima geschreven， maar het is de walgelijke figuur van Donald Trump die het een moeilijk verteerbaar boek maakt。Het geeft wel goede inzichten in wat voor een wansmakelijk mens Trump is en hoe hij de meest arrogante， meest incompetente en meest gevaarlijke president van de VS werd。
Charles
，
Realy a 4。5， possibly more。 Maggie Haberman is the real deal， by which I mean she has developed a solidly researched， well written， and extraordinarily engaging account not just of the Trump presidency， from campaign through Jan 6 and post-presidency， but from his earliest years in NYC。 Through this very important lense， the reader can really better understand how Trump "raised"， so to speak， hucksterism to the national leadership level。 At first， in reading this， I was a bit bored with the NYC Realy a 4。5， possibly more。 Maggie Haberman is the real deal， by which I mean she has developed a solidly researched， well written， and extraordinarily engaging account not just of the Trump presidency， from campaign through Jan 6 and post-presidency， but from his earliest years in NYC。 Through this very important lense， the reader can really better understand how Trump "raised"， so to speak， hucksterism to the national leadership level。 At first， in reading this， I was a bit bored with the NYC Origins， but as the tales of Trump's real estate and other deals developed， all the opening chapters took on great importance， and then established a solid basis for grasping the Trump hucksterism in its length and breadth。 Another great book to start 2023。 。。。more
Brian
，
I'm giving this a 4， rounded up from 3。5。 Haberman has an easy to read style。 She covers Trump's early life as well as his career and entrance into politics。 I know this book will be vehemently debated， more based on one's politics rather than he book itself。I found the book a worthwhile read although I didn't learn much new。I knew of Donald Trump before "Art of the Deal" in 1987， the Casinos， "The Apprentice" or politics。 I was involved in business in the NY metropolitan area， was a business ne I'm giving this a 4， rounded up from 3。5。 Haberman has an easy to read style。 She covers Trump's early life as well as his career and entrance into politics。 I know this book will be vehemently debated， more based on one's politics rather than he book itself。I found the book a worthwhile read although I didn't learn much new。I knew of Donald Trump before "Art of the Deal" in 1987， the Casinos， "The Apprentice" or politics。 I was involved in business in the NY metropolitan area， was a business news junkie。 Born in NYC I loved reading about its history and growth so I knew of Fred Trump too。My first exposures to Donald Trump was his business tactics。 Haberman covers them， but not as deeply as I had hoped。 Donald's business life， beyond the PR， was a tale of an unethical person， taking advantage of vendors， investors and shareholders。The political life of President Trump is one that most will see through their own lenses。 I think Haberman avoided a hatchet job， but portrayed a tough reality。 。。。more
Brian Keeping
，
How did we ever elect this guy？ Former Trump Chief-of-Staff calls Trump “ the most flawed person that he’d ever met”。 Extraordinarily dark time for America。
Olaf Koopmans
，
'Confidence Man' Is a the perfect example of why Journalists shouldn’t write history。 A writer is supposed to give structure， overview and insight。 Unfortunatly she hardly does any of this。 This book is almost as badly written as Trump when he's speaking his mind。 Uncoherently rambling on without going nowhere。 Haberman chooses to tell chronologicaly about Trump's Business life， followed by an account of his political。 At some points almost on a day to day basis。 Specked with a lot quotes from h 'Confidence Man' Is a the perfect example of why Journalists shouldn’t write history。 A writer is supposed to give structure， overview and insight。 Unfortunatly she hardly does any of this。 This book is almost as badly written as Trump when he's speaking his mind。 Uncoherently rambling on without going nowhere。 Haberman chooses to tell chronologicaly about Trump's Business life， followed by an account of his political。 At some points almost on a day to day basis。 Specked with a lot quotes from himself and people who he encounters， she tries to give a detailed account of what has happened。 But by just endlessly repeating the saga’s and ideocycronities that made up Trump carriere， doesn’t mean you bring something new to the table。 We've heard all stories over and over again。 The man is a dump nitwit， we know that by now。 Just get on with it and offer some perspective。 Instead she just ruminates all the old stories without adding overview and insight。 Hardly any about the man himself， but more disappointingly， nothing about the broader political American spectrum or it's Society。 What makes it even harder to follow is the endless parading of characters who filled Trump's life。 There's way to much quoting of unimportant people and a lot of 'he said， she said’ information presented。 At one point as a reader you get lost in all the specifics and just don’t care anymore。 In that way Haberman says a lot but doesn’t tell very much。 Finally one last remark about the style of writing with is really anoying。 Haberman uses a lot of very long sentences， broken up by punctuation marks， making them hard to follow till the end。 Most disturbing is her use of brackets to insert indirectly related information in to a sentence， getting you off track about the initial point she was trying to make。 All in all a frustrated read， were you're skipping pages after pages in the hope that it get's better。 But it doesn't。 Finally you're even dumbfounded when on the last page she comes up with some kind of conclusion about the way Trump uses his surrounding's， apparantly as psyhiaterists， for his own benefit。 A conclusion with is interesting to say the least， but comes completly out of nowhere。 I guess we all just have to wait for a real Historian to shed some light on the confusing experience that was or is Trump's political life。 。。。more
Rsaunders1
，
I loved this book。 It reads like the best true crime thriller with a great cliffhanger。
Jennifer O’Connor
，
A few insider tidbits here but nothing earth-shattering。 MH basically confirms everything you probably already thought about Trump。 The book reads as a play by play of all the mini scandals I already knew about from following Twitter， and more than anything else it made me so glad I am no longer doing that （because we don’t have a narcissistic incompetent in the Oval Office anymore）！ I could barely muster interest in hearing about Trump again， now that he no longer seems to pose an imminent thre A few insider tidbits here but nothing earth-shattering。 MH basically confirms everything you probably already thought about Trump。 The book reads as a play by play of all the mini scandals I already knew about from following Twitter， and more than anything else it made me so glad I am no longer doing that （because we don’t have a narcissistic incompetent in the Oval Office anymore）！ I could barely muster interest in hearing about Trump again， now that he no longer seems to pose an imminent threat to democracy， and this will probably be the last book on his presidency I’ll ever read。 。。。more
Kathleen
，
there’s nothing here that hasn’t already been covered in the news， but i love Haberman’s unique talent of diving deep into Trump’s essence， and the way that she is able to use interviews and interactions to piece together exactly who Trump is and why he is the way that he is。
Nivedita Velagaleti
，
Very detailed like she was trump’s best friend！ Getting to know trump from the very beginning puts a lot into perspective。 Here’s a man who has been a millionaire since birth and still is a childish millionaire（？）。 It’s funny how world works around him where he is never wrong， he is the “best” person， President， businessman。 He really is a “confidence man”。 Pulling off all that shit and never thinking he’s to blame。 And the worst part is he believes every lie he propagates is the truth。 Maggie H Very detailed like she was trump’s best friend！ Getting to know trump from the very beginning puts a lot into perspective。 Here’s a man who has been a millionaire since birth and still is a childish millionaire（？）。 It’s funny how world works around him where he is never wrong， he is the “best” person， President， businessman。 He really is a “confidence man”。 Pulling off all that shit and never thinking he’s to blame。 And the worst part is he believes every lie he propagates is the truth。 Maggie Haberman is a hell of an investigative journalist and has meticulously detailed every scandal of Trump。 。。。more
Matt
，
Readying myself for what is sure to be another intense presidential election period ahead of the 2024 vote， I have begun looking into things political once more。 This biography of sorts by award-winning journalist Maggie Haberman proves not only insightful， but also offers context to how Donald J。 Trump rose through the ranks of business and entertainment to achieve fame， whereby he squandered it all during a troubling term in office。 With his attempts to regain power in 2024， it seemed apt to r Readying myself for what is sure to be another intense presidential election period ahead of the 2024 vote， I have begun looking into things political once more。 This biography of sorts by award-winning journalist Maggie Haberman proves not only insightful， but also offers context to how Donald J。 Trump rose through the ranks of business and entertainment to achieve fame， whereby he squandered it all during a troubling term in office。 With his attempts to regain power in 2024， it seemed apt to revisit some of his story， as well as analyses of his time in office， through the eyes of a journalist who was one of those allowed into his inner sanctum the most。Haberman offers a look into the early days of the Trump family， where young Donald was groomed by his father， Fred， to become a man of business。 Fred was anything but ethical in many of his dealings， but this is perhaps where Donald acquired his ‘cutting corners’ and ‘Trump means business’ mentalities， even if they only served to create resentment。 Trump began tossing his name and borrowed money around， only to discover that he could get what he wanted through acts of bullying and name calling。 Haberman clearly explains that while he got things he wanted， Trump was scoffed at behind his back， creating airs of resentment that would follow him like a bad odour。While Trump sought to grow his empire， his eye was never far from looking for his next conquest。 This is by no means shocking to anyone who has read recent pieces about the man， though it is enlightening and disconcerting at the same time to see a man who saw women as possessions， much like the real estate Trump bandied around whenever he felt like it。 Misogyny drips from many of the anecdotes Haberman offers， which have been substantiated by many of those she interviewed for the book。Dabbling into the political arena， Trump always sought to support others who wanted to get into the mud， rather than dive in himself。 Trump sought to back those he felt could do him favours or owe him for financial backing。 This served to be a mixed bag， as Trump never really was able to find a surefire way of picking a winner。 Still， he made himself known and offered many critical moments for those who held the reins of power。When Donald Trump decided to toss his hat into the ring， it was a hot mess that only got worse。 Haberman explores the 2016 presidential campaign that gripped the country， with many of the famous Trump asides that had filled columns and books over the past member of years。 Trump sought to make his mark and， at times， use bombastic actions over substantive policies to win over an electorate seeking something different。 Haberman explores a number of theories leading to Trump’s victory， but keeps things as evidence-based as she can。With Haberman front and centre covering the Trump Administration， she is able to explore some of the day to day moments that shaped his presidency， including how he would use Cabinet Secretaries as puppets to push some of his outlandish views。 Some did so willingly while others held their noses （and tongues） as best they could until it was too much。 Piling up gaffes and a refusing to follow diplomatic or policy views cemented in the American political way of life， Trump sought to carve out his own niche， always saying that it is what the people wanted。Haberman offers a succinct but impactful exploration of the 2020 presidential campaign， where Trump lost and yet refused to believe it。 The conspiracies mounted and Trump did all he could not to let the defeat sink in， choosing instead to scream ‘foul’ and surround himself with sycophants who would do the same。 Haberman illustrates the desperation that followed， including how Trump grasped at straws to have his own vice-president try to defy constitutional and congressional rules to supplant a defeated president into office for another term。 Readers can baffle at the gumption of the man。Maggie Haberman chose not to make this about another smear campaign against the 45th president of the United States， but rather offer some context that all readers ought to heed。 Trump was not born out of the swamp and became this aggressive man in 2015 when he chose to run for office。 Rather， it was instilled in him for years and he grew into expecting the entitlement to follow him， so far that he wanted everyone to bow down and kiss the ring。 Through well-document chapters， Haberman spins wonderful tale of success and failure， substantiated with many interviews from others who have their own opinions。 While the book is longer， its detail helps to push it to the top， so that readers can feel a sense of education throughout the experience。 Some will love it， others will not。 Either way， its educational and entertainment value cannot be dismissed。 Maggie Haberman shows why she is award-winning， and one can hope she has more to write soon。Kudos， Madam Haberman， for pulling no punches and keeping the reader informed throughout the journey。 I could not have asked for more。Love/hate the review？ An ever-growing collection of others appears at: http://pecheyponderings。wordpress。com/ 。。。more
Lauren
，
A detailed account of Trump's journey to the presidency and his tenure in the White House that comes from a much more journalistic approach than a Michael Wolff account。 I enjoyed the first chapter and the epilogue the most out of this book， because it was interesting to get Maggie's perspective on Trump and his behaviour as a journalist who covered Trump extensively and who was the subject of his ire。 The rest was basically one long article about Trump and there wasn't a whole lot that I didn't A detailed account of Trump's journey to the presidency and his tenure in the White House that comes from a much more journalistic approach than a Michael Wolff account。 I enjoyed the first chapter and the epilogue the most out of this book， because it was interesting to get Maggie's perspective on Trump and his behaviour as a journalist who covered Trump extensively and who was the subject of his ire。 The rest was basically one long article about Trump and there wasn't a whole lot that I didn't already know。 。。。more
Holly Pickering
，
Maggie Haberman details Trump’s life from a young age to current day。 Her coverage was exemplary， and it detailed what I assumed about DJT with my armchair “quarterbacking”。 My opinions of him hold true， I’ve never read of him having one redeeming quality， even though I’d like to think everyone has something good in them。 It seems this will be the last book I read on this topic， because they all say the same thing。 There are millions more FABULOUS topics to read about than DJT。
Mary
，
WOW -' everyone needs to read this book WOW -' everyone needs to read this book 。。。more
Susan Black
，
I listened to the audio book read by the author。
Emily Simmer
，
A fair and comprehensive examination of the 45th president and how he came to be who he is today。 Well-researched and thorough。
Andie
，
Maggie Haberman was arguably Donald Trump’s favorite reporter。 He identified with her as another hard-boiled New Yorker and also as a representative of the New York Times， the paper he most wanted to respect him。 Based on hundreds of hours of interviews and covering his events， Haberman draws what may be the most complete psychological portrait of this country’s 45th President。This was a hard book to put down。
Laura Starks
，
DNF。 I just don’t care enough to learn about the minutiae of this guy， his life， history and countless grifts for 600 plus pages。
Donna Barton Brothers
，
I wish 4。5 stars was an option。 I give it 5 stars for the research， storytelling， and attention to detail。 Also， I appreciated that， while the author seemed to not care for Donald Trump， she did stick to the facts and report them without offering her opinion of them which allowed room for the reader to draw their own conclusions。 I would offer 4 stars for repetitiveness。 It's like if the Cincinnati Bengals had a losing season and lost all of their games in pretty much the same way--say their def I wish 4。5 stars was an option。 I give it 5 stars for the research， storytelling， and attention to detail。 Also， I appreciated that， while the author seemed to not care for Donald Trump， she did stick to the facts and report them without offering her opinion of them which allowed room for the reader to draw their own conclusions。 I would offer 4 stars for repetitiveness。 It's like if the Cincinnati Bengals had a losing season and lost all of their games in pretty much the same way--say their defense collapsed in every losing game。 And then someone writing about their season recounted each game and the minutia behind the defense's failure to execute。 So it felt like a lot of Donald-Trump-being-moronic-and-here's-how。 However， it may take some readers all 200 of those examples to come to terms with the fact that it's quite possible that he's just a moron。 All in all， I liked the book and would recommend it。 。。。more
Meghan Albizo
，
If you know the history of Trump and his family， this book offers few new details。What I really didn’t like was Maggie’s constant rewriting of history to either make him look not so bad or her not as involved。 It seems forthcoming when it actually couldn’t be farther from the truth。
Caleb
，
Out of the handful of books I've read on the Trump presidency， this is hands down the most engaging， insightful， and compulsively readable。 Haberman reveals Trump's true "heart of hearts" in these pages， through intimate anecdotes， loads of firsthand accounts from aides and cabinet members， and offering an incisive analysis of the man's （ironically， considering the title） broken， pervasively fearful psyche。 A fascinating and expertly-crafted portrait on an existential threat of a president。 Out of the handful of books I've read on the Trump presidency， this is hands down the most engaging， insightful， and compulsively readable。 Haberman reveals Trump's true "heart of hearts" in these pages， through intimate anecdotes， loads of firsthand accounts from aides and cabinet members， and offering an incisive analysis of the man's （ironically， considering the title） broken， pervasively fearful psyche。 A fascinating and expertly-crafted portrait on an existential threat of a president。 。。。more
Andrew
，
Fascinating from the first page to the last。 Haberman is a very readable author。 Some of her tales of Trump's pre-POTUS days were very interesting， and made more than a few actions during his presidency make a little more sense。 Fascinating from the first page to the last。 Haberman is a very readable author。 Some of her tales of Trump's pre-POTUS days were very interesting， and made more than a few actions during his presidency make a little more sense。 。。。more
Bruce Cline
，