Trump and Me

by Mark Singer

Ever since Donald Trump entered the presidential race—in a press conference attended by paid actors, in which he slandered Mexican immigrants—he has dominated headlines, becoming the unrestrained id at the center of one of the most bizarre and alarming elections in American history.

It was not always so. In 1996, longtime New Yorker writer Mark Singer was conscripted by his editor to profile Donald Trump. At that time Trump was a mere Manhattan-centric megalomaniac, a failing casino operator mired in his second divorce and (he claimed) recovering from the bankruptcy proceedings that prompted him to inventory the contents of his Trump Tower home. Conversing with Trump in his offices, apartments, cars, and private plane, Singer found himself fascinated with this man “who had aspired to and achieved the ultimate luxury, an existence unmolested by the rumbling of a soul.”

In Trump and Me , Singer revisits the profile and recounts how its publication lodged inside its subject’s head as an enduring irritant—and how Singer (“A TOTAL LOSER!” according to Trump) cheerfully continued to bait him. He reflects on Trump’s evolution from swaggering buffoon to potential threat to America’s standing as a rational guardian of the world order. Heedlessly combative, equally adept at spewing insults and manipulating crowds at his campaign rallies, the self-proclaimed billionaire has emerged as an unlikely tribune of populist rage. All politics is artifice, and Singer marvels at how Trump has transfixed an electorate with his ultimate feat of performance art—a mass political movement only loosely tethered to reality.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Biography, History, Memoir, Journalism, Essays

112 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2016

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my 'stationary bike' book last night; however you feel about the current political situation I think this book will be of interest to everyone trying to figure out the new political landscape we all find ourselves in. I think that most people will agree that President Trump is a very unique figure in American politics. This book will give you additional insight into what he thinks.

[Yoda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly I enjoyed this one a lot more than I thought. Mark Singers take on Donald Trump is both hilarious and informing. I´ve always liked satire so as long as you can understand sarcasm and aren´t a fan of Donald Trump you should definitely read it. Or actually even if you do like him please read this so it can open your eyes.

[Steve Peifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite line: It is deeply unfair to say that Trump lies all the time. I would never suggest that he lies when he's asleep. This book is from a profile on Trump the author wrote for The New Yorker in 1996. Not much has changed since then. Sad.

[Donald Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Singer is a hero for sharing this quick read. The unblemished truth, revealed twenty years ago. His final observations are salient and horrifying but oddly amusing. Please consider this little biography before November. The author is "Newyorker" magazine erudite with plain language too.

[Scott Rhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

In just the few short days since I finished reading this book, there have been three police shootings of black men reported on in the news. A recent report stated that our nation's coastlines are flooding due to global climate change. The body count in Aleppo continues to rise. Rape, murder, theft: the news is inundated with this shit. There is something seriously wrong in this country; arguably, there has always been something wrong with this country, but it's getting uglier and meaner, and what do people on CNN, FOX News, and Facebook talk about? Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's divorce.

I suppose it's human nature to avoid, ignore, or deny those things that one has no control over and that make one uncomfortable. It's so much easier to turn a blind eye to the things that need to be addressed, that require serious attention, that necessitate change. It's only natural to put your head in the sand when the world around you is falling apart.

But to live your whole life without thinking about anything but yourself---to have everything given to you from birth so that you never have to need anything, to find the thought of looking deep into your own soul and reflect on the kind of person that you are as so utterly terrifying that you need to continuously find distractions of entertainment, women, money, whatever---is no kind of life.

Socrates said, "The unexamined life is not worth living." He could have been referring to Donald Trump.

In 1996, Mark Singer, a staff writer for The New Yorker magazine, was given the assignment to follow and interview Trump for several days. He did not want this assignment. Like many (most) people in the world, he had a love-hate relationship with Trump. He loved to hate him. Reluctantly, he agreed to do it.

The resultant article that appeared in The New Yorker was scathingly funny. Trump was a fatuous, arrogant, ridiculously immature man-child who also happened to be loaded. He was so loaded that he literally could get anything he wanted. Well, almost anything. The thing he couldn't get was respect from Singer.

Singer published the article in a collection of essays and articles that ended up on the New York Times Bestseller List. Granted, it was somewhere in the top 500. Several weeks after the book hit the stores, Trump sent him a note, written in all caps, bold, "MARK, YOU ARE A TOTAL LOSER! AND YOUR BOOK (AND WRITINGS) SUCKS! BEST WISHES, DONALD. P.S. AND I HEAR IT IS SELLING BADLY."

Recently, Singer's original article, along with updated material, was published in a very small book entitled "Trump and Me". It is worth reading as an honest, humorous, and yet horrifying expose about a truly awful person.

Trump is an awful person, but the feeling I have for him even over the disgust and loathing is pity. Trump is incapable of self-reflection. He is incapable of it because to be self-reflective one must first have a self. Trump's identity is based solely on image: his own, based on what he believes a successful person should be, and those of people who suck up to him---workers who feign respect, celebrities who are as vacuous as he is, and anybody who idolizes him because of his money. To have nothing about one's life to ponder and critically analyze is, in my opinion, extremely sad.

I feel sorry for him, in that regard. Mostly, though, I think he is just a dangerous asshole who will destroy this country if he is elected.

[Is Jem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like Trump's greatest hope for his own dick, my main complaint is this isn't longer.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Trump and Me” is an insightful, humorous yet sincere and truthful expose of Donald Trump written by Mark Singer, a notable journalist and staff columnist of the New Yorker since 1974. He is the author of several books profiling public figures and literary criticism, including ‘Somewhere in America’ (2004) and ‘Character Studies’ (2005). He lives in NYC.

In 1996 Singer was carefully selected and assigned by editor Tina Brown to write about Donald Trump for the New Yorker, Brown felt Singer would love Trump’s sense of humor and style as much as she did. In the introduction editor David Remnick recalled a time when Trump was more or less regarded as a “harmless buffoon” to New Yorker’s. As Singer reluctantly interviewed Trump and was given considerable access to Trump’s character, true opinions, viewpoints, and toured many places, including the Trump Tower, and Trumps posh, elegantly designed, breath taking, enormous penthouse-- a true portrait of the real estate mogul immerged, as Singer contemplated the prospect of taking Trump seriously.

By that time several books and hundreds of articles had already been written. The letter from Trump regarding Singers article was included, he stated that Singer’s writing was no match for literary greats as Updike, Roth or Orhan Pamuk: Trump could not resist boasting that he had been a bestselling author for over 20 years!
Beginning in the 1970’s to the 1990’s New Yorkers had become accustomed to Trump’s familiar antics for publicity with his ability to induce discord and outrage with his insults and name calling of various officials. The ultimate business showman seemed to have an insatiable need for wealth, fame, celebrity as he declared his unfiltered opinions without regard for public perception or consequences.
By the early 1990’s Trump had stiffed his creditors for an estimated $800 million dollars, and would later deny this happened. Orchestrating his come-back with a syndicate of Asian investors led by Henry Cheng, he also converted his Atlantic City Casino’s to public ownership despite being unaccustomed to accountability to shareholders. The NYT dutifully reported Trump's“brush with bankruptcy”.
With his second marriage to his beautiful (trophy) wife Marla Maples ending, Trump was pleased with his combined abilities with his team of attorney’s to pay lesser settlements with pre-nuptial agreements. When Donald compared his former wife Ivana to Leona Helmsly he was admonished by columnist Liz Smith. A friend of Maples babbled about Trump’s sexual prowess which resulted in the most “libel-proof headline and instant classic ever published by the Post.”
Singer prophetically observed (1997) that as there was no “new Nixon” there was neither a “new Trump”. Trump courted and manipulated the press on a daily basis; (he)“who lives in the zero-sum world of 'winners and total losers’” Trump's perception depended on those he considered loyal supportive friends or those disagreed with him were likely attacked as “total garbage”.

There is no one else like Trump. Is his 2016 Republican Presidency candidacy genuine/authentic? Trump’s political strategist Paul Manafort has unique challenges to convert Trump’s unconventional image to a more presidential one as Trump appeared before the public with his spray-on tan and over-styled pumpkin colored hair.
“I love the poorly educated!” Trump gleefully declared, his supporters according to Singer appeared as “witless enablers”--as Trump spewed his customary banter of threats and insults that seemed targeted at Mexicans and the 1.6 billion Muslims world-wide. This fascinating book is a highly informative must read. ~ With thanks to the Seattle Public Library.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Megalomaniac, buffoon, narcissist, misogynist, self absorbed. These are all used to describe Donald Trump in Singer's accurate, yet disturbing profile of a man who's delusions and self aggrandisement sadly have not kept him out of the White House. In fact they may have helped to put him there. At the time of writing this, Trump was still only starting his assault on the American people and seemed harmless enough. This author, like the rest of the world, never thought that Trump's aspirations to become president would come to anything. This was a scathing yet entertaining and at times witty and humorous look at a man who bluffed his way into one of the most powerful positions in the world. A man who Singer describes as a "perpetual 17 year old." Terrifying? Yes I think so.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically a re-presentation of an article Singer wrote for "New Yorker" magazine in 1996 sprinkled with a brief rundown of Trump's most infamous quotes since June, 1915, when Trump declared his run for the presidency. Singer didn't want to do the piece, but his editor, Tina Brown, insisted. Once he experienced Trump and his life, Singer changed his mind and decided this was a story to tell.
Singer opines that Trump doesn't really want to be president. He just wants to win the race. He hates to lose. Sounds about right for his temperament.
It's only 4 more days until the election. If only that would put an end to hearing this megalomaniac's name and voice.

[Jake Proctor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read. Very short and finished in 2 days leisure reading. Enjoyable however. Madonna chapter lengthy and Believe Me truly saves the best to last! Enjoyable read for us Historians and Politicos!

[Khris Sellin · Rating 5 out of 5]

First written 20 years ago, then updated and added to during the election. Ok, I admit I enjoyed reading it because it just confirmed everything we already knew about the human (?) excrement currently occupying the White House. So now that there are rumblings about how most of his staff have debated having him removed under the 25th Amendment, that's great and all if it gets him the hell out of there, but I wouldn't want people being misled into thinking something "happened" to him, like he's got dementia or losing his mind in some way. He's always been a narcissistic buffoon with criminal tendencies. We just didn't care that much because we didn't have to deal with him. How the hell did this happen?
Best quote: "Trump... had aspired to and achieved the ultimate luxury, an existence unmolested by the rumbling of a soul."

[Felix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this was a very short book. Was it sweet? I suppose not quite. I've learnt a number of new vignettes, some of them rather telling, but as for the book's two main conclusions I had reached them on my own a long time ago:

1. Donald Trump is a worthless, useless, shameless piece of human excrement.

2. The whole Trump thing has been created and sustained out of thin air by the media. There is no there there otherwise.

I could go on a bit more but perhaps there is no need. I am going to place the book in a nearby communal library in the hope that may help open somebody's eyes to the tragic travesty of human being that Trump is.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It is deeply unfair to say that Trump lies all the time. I would never suggest that he lies when he's asleep."

Really good (quick) read about a terrible human. The author has spent time with Trump, he definitely had apt insights. I recommend it if you also wanna know the enemy!

Now I needa cleanse my soul of The Trump, I also got a book from library about the lovely Misty Copeland, I'll go look at that now.

[Terzah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me laugh out loud, in a sort of despairing way.....but at least I was laughing. I recommend it to all Trump fans and foes alike; it was a fitting way to end my year in reading.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. In 1996, around the time his second marriage was tanking, Mark Singer wrote a profile of Donald Trump for the New Yorker, a piece which irritated his subject to such an extent that Singer was able to keep poking him with a sharp stick for years afterward, which only highlights his ability to carry a grudge beyond all reason - not a desirable trait (to put it mildly) in someone who aspires to access to the nuclear codes. I actually found the introductory and closing material more interesting than the profile itself, which comprises the largest section of the book. However, what he writes near the end of the piece is probably one of the most spot-on - and chilling - pieces of analysis I've read - that this was a man "who had aspired to and achieved the ultimate luxury, an existence unmolested by the rumbling of a soul."

[Linda Belmont · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our President. Here is an intimate portrait of the man. A compendium of his horse shit compiled in a handy, easy-to-read little narrative. Frightening.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have many thoughts about this, but mostly fresh tears for who we have invited to the White House.

[Emilie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun little find published pre-presidential victory when Singer is still able to laugh at the idea of Trump winning… can we go back to just thinking he was a little delulu?!!

[Owen Lyne · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

Interesting and funny little read, gives you a little bit more of an insight into who Trump really is.

[Gaylord Dold · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trump and Me by Mark Singer, Foreward by David Remnick (Crown, Tim Duggan Books, New York 2016)

In the foreward to this splendid retrospective (a “profile” published in The New Yorker Magazine in 1996) describes the particular problem posed by Donald Trump. He was “beyond parody”—a man of “rampaging ego, sufficient funds, and a neediness greater than that of an infant.” Not only was (and is) Trump beyond parody (though Alec Baldwin does nicely, doesn’t he?) but he was a “constant” in the New York tabloids, a guy who didn’t care if he came off as crude, his vulgarity “unstoppable and without limit.” Trump on the radio with Howard Stern said of his former wife (Ivanka), “Nice tits, no brains.” Going on to Stern, Trump said, “You know it doesn’t really matter what you write as long as you’ve got a young and beautiful piece of ass.”

Mark Singer, assigned by Tina Brown to “do Trump”, was understandably reluctant. Singer was the real deal, a solid writer of quality pieces on interesting people of genuine character. He did magician and scholar Ricky Jay among others. He was a superior magazine writer, intelligent, well read, educated and experienced. Singer had to take the assignment. And so, off he went to Trump’s gargantuan apartment, not then located in Trump Tower, but in another building on Columbus Circle. Off he went to Mar-a-Lago, just then being renovated and Trumps favorite stomping grounds, a garish La-La Land of gold trimming and marble. Here’s Singer on Trump’s “thing”. “Salesmen, and Trump is nothing if not a brilliant salesman, specialize in simulated intimacy rather than the real thing. His modus operandi has a sharp focus: fly the flag, never budge from the premise that the universe revolves around you, and above all, stay in character…The patented Trump palaver, a gaseous blather of ‘fantastics’ and ‘amazings’ and ‘terrifics’ and ‘incredibles’ and various synonyms for ‘biggest,’ is an indispensable ingredient of the name brand. In Trump’s office, Singer finds the walls plastered with photos and magazine covers of Trump’s face (or someone who looked like him). Singer concludes: “The profusion of these images—of a man who possessed unusual skills, though not, evidently, a gene for irony—seemed the sum of his appetite for self-reflection.”

Singer decides to look for Trump’s soul—his capacity for self-reflection. “Trump”—a fellow with universal recognition but with a suspicion that an interior life was an intolerable inconvenience, a creature everywhere and nowhere, uniquely capable of inhabiting it all at once, all alone.”

Nothing has changed, except that Trump is now President of the United States, not just a hack real estate shill, a narcissist, a louche foul buffoon. Just yesterday (May 1, 2017), Trump wondered out loud on some Right Wing radio program about Andrew Jackson’s worry over the outbreak of the Civil War. Never mind that Jackson had been dead for sixteen years when the war broke out at Ft. Sumter.

Singer’s piece is wow, fabulous, fantastic, amazing, really terrific, almost incredible, and really, really, really great.

I’m just kidding. It really is!

[Ricardo Motti · Rating 2 out of 5]

A essa altura do campeonato, nada muito diferente do que a gente já sabe.

[Elliot Ratzman · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Whatever complicates the world more I do,” [Trump] said. “It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out.” This small book is a nice gift for your anti-Trump friends who can’t gloat enough over Trump’s stupid, unclassifiable antics. Mark Singer interviewed Trump in the late 90s for a New Yorker profile and the “con-man,” “cheat,” and vulgar sexist is on full display—“a fellow with universal recognition but with a suspicion that an interior life was an intolerable inconvenience.” This is a reprint of that article, padded with Singer’s recollections of his time with Trump, Trump’s reaction to the article and so forth. It’s amusing reading, released after Trump won the primaries but before the election. Paul Manafort, and even Matthew Calamari (who only became a name during the Cohen testimonies) make cameos. Singer ended his article thusly: Trump “who had aspired to and achieved the ultimate luxury, an existence unmolested by the rumbling of a soul.”

[Ian Hamilton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This short read is nothing more than an aptly timed release to further punk the Donald pre-election 2016...but who cares? He's a megalomaniac and scum. While it's hard to know whether the specific details of a series of interviews are totally spot on 20 years after the fact, it's probably safe to say that this is a fairly accurate depiction of the man. And the fact that this is the remnant of a New Yorker piece lends further credibility. Not much here that public doesn't already know, but it's mildly entertaining at times and a very quick read. Recommended if you're bored and/or have time to kill; otherwise, nah.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark Singer is a staff writer for The New Yorker. In 1996, he wrote a profile of Donald Trump, which forms the greater part of this book. Interestingly, Trump appears not to have changed in the last 20 years. Singer them brings the tale up to date with a chapter called "Believe Me"in which he talks about the Donald's presidential campaign (characterized as an"extended exhibition of Trumpian autoeroticism.") If you are a Trump fan, this book is not for you. I am not and therefore enjoyed every minute of it. Also, if you are pressed for time it's quite short.

[Em · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book, but it was written in such a pretentious way, that the author completely lost his point. Mark Singer profiled trump years ago, so he was drawing on these past interviews to paint a picture of the ugly man who is now the disgusting nominee. The problem, was that stylistically, it seems like Singer just sat with a thesaurus so he could use every big word he could find. He may just have a magnificent vocabulary, but it made reading cumbersome and it did not seem aimed at the general public.

[Donia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Five stars for the attempt at showing what a fake Trump is but two stars for the final product. I didn't find this book providing anything interesting or new. I read the book with a preconceived belief in the character of Trump and this book backed my beliefs up. It isn't that Singer is wrong about Trump it is simply that Singer's writing is choppy and disjointed. I think that Singer was padding the pages of this little and I mean little in size and length in order to come up with enough "information" to make his script book length.

[Book2Dragon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Appalled and frightened by the direction our current administration is taking? Wondering where this ego-megalomaniac came from and how he got into the White House? Hoping your assessment is wrong, and that there is some sense behind the government shutdown, pull out from the middle east and alliance with Russia? This is the book to read.
It felt good to have someone be truly honest about their feelings and assessment of the man. I'm admittedly biased, but then, most people are. Whichever side you stand on, you should read this book. Then use a fact finder app.

[Alli The Book Giraffe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trump and Me was published in 2016 but most of the events take place in 1996. This was an interesting little book that really shows that Trump is who he has always been. He just hid it better before. Closer to the end it starts talking about current events and I only wish there was more to that part.

[Suzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I needed a good chuckle and this book delivered. Although admittedly, it did annoy me to no end at some points. Just because I could clearly picture he-who-must-not-be-named saying everything. A super short, and ridiculously easy read.

[Jakenv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Singer in a few short pages presents a picture that leaves a reader knowing the truth. Highly recommend to anyone interested in current affairs.