Real Author Donald Trump Reportedly Musing About Writing His Own White House Tell-All
It feels inevitable that President Donald Trump would (ghost) write another book. And lo! A report on yonder horizon breaks.
As the Daily Beast reported today, Trump has mused since at least mid-2017 about owning disloyal ex-staffers, the media, and his critics with a tell-all memoir about his time in the White House.
Per the site:
Another source, who is a friend of Trump’s, said the president has casually discussed how such a book could be used to dish dirt and settle scores with his foes in the media, the Democratic Party, non-loyal Republicans, law enforcement, and even individuals in his own administration. Trump, according to this person, noted that this memoir could help “correct” the “fake news” already published in popular books and newspapers, and give him the opportunity to spin a juicy yarn on his time at the heights of power.
The source recalled there was at least one time when he heard the president say, “that’ll go great in a book,” referring to something that had just happened in a social setting. The implication left was that Trump was passively taking note of potential fodder.
“Passively taking note” is the key phrase here, because it’s highly unlikely that the president is actually taking notes on anything or actually planning on writing any such book himself. Trump has “authored” somewhere between 15 and 18 books, depending on whether you count the ones self-published by Trump University and the “debut novel” he eventually took his name off of.
Another source told the Beast that Trump sounded “excited” talking about a possible book last year, saying “it would sell better than even The Art of the Deal.”
And although any book by Trump would be filled with utter lies, it would also probably make him a lot of money. The Beast does note, however, that publishing it would be a complete nightmare for whichever company decides they want to let the president vomit his poisonous legacy all over their brand.
Other publishing industry insiders said Trump would be a difficult author to promote because he is liable to disregard a rollout plan for the book’s “scoops” and exclusive information.
“I don’t think he’d be able to keep his mouth shut to have the revelations land at the right moment,” one top publishing source said. “But I do think he’d be able to get his supporters to buy it as merchandise.”
The site also posits that such a book could earn an advance in the low “at least in the low seven figures,” which would provide a nice jumping off point for some ill-fated, Trump-branded conservative media venture, another idea that’s been tossed around by his inner circle.
Considering that pretty much every other person who’s left in his administration has cashed in on writing their own tell-all, it feels like a given that Trump will cash in (even more) after the presidency, and that his supporters will buy it in droves. But for all our sakes, let’s hope he releases it in 2021, not 2025.