NEVER ENOUGH
Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success
Michael D'Antonio
Illustrated. Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press; 389 pp; $26.99
As pure entertainment, the race for the Republican presidential nomination has been a resounding success. Donald Trump, the star, has been by turns witty, provocative, outrageous - and always telegenic. He helped draw an estimated 24 million viewers to the first televised Republican debate, a record, and a ratings bonanza for Fox News, with which he nonetheless publicly feuded. Blithely flouting all conventions of presidential debate and decorum, Mr Trump indulged in the name-calling, personal attacks and one-liners that have vaulted him to the top of the polls.
Much of the media is treating the contest as just another reality show, in which any day we're going to tune in to watch Mr Trump get voted off. But in the aptly titled and perfectly timed Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success, Michael D'Antonio, a former Newsday reporter and author of over a dozen books, places Mr Trump's life and career in a context that helps explain why his emergence at the top of Republican presidential polls was not only plausible but inevitable. In the self-absorption and self-promotion he has practiced all his life, "Donald Trump is not a man apart," Mr D'Antonio contends. "He is, instead, merely one of us writ large."
Never Enough is an admirably straightforward, even-handed but nonetheless damning account of Mr Trump's life, including his failed marriages and businesses and his emergence as a reality television star and presidential contender. Mr Trump provided some access before cutting off Mr D'Antonio and his research assistant after they dared to interview someone on his long list of enemies.
Out of necessity, Mr D'Antonio relies heavily on published sources, which are voluminous, considering that Mr Trump's every move has been chronicled by the media and that he's already the subject of a substantial bibliography, not to mention his 10 autobiographical and self-help books, from 1987's The Art of the Deal to this year's e-book Trump for President: Why We Need a Leader, Not a Politician.
Mr D'Antonio points out the obvious, which is that much of what Mr Trump says can euphemistically be called exaggeration, but he sheds little light on the source and scope of Mr Trump's fortune, which is his primary qualification for the presidency. Most of Mr Trump's claims - to being a great deal-maker, a great athlete, a great businessman - are hard to verify, though there seems little more than a kernel of truth to at least some of them.
This year Forbes pegs Mr Trump's wealth at $4.1 billion, which, while less than half the $9 billion Trump claims, indeed makes him rich. Much of that wealth comes from the Trump brand rather than deal-making per se. His star turn on NBC's "The Celebrity Apprentice," his licensing fees, his books, his speaking engagements, even his men's wear line, have brought in millions. He's had good divorce lawyers.
But he's hardly another Henry R Kravis or Carl C Icahn. Four of his heavily indebted casino companies filed for bankruptcy, stiffing his creditors. Citibank took possession of the ill-fated Trump Shuttle airline. Mr Trump himself narrowly escaped personal bankruptcy.
Whatever the outcome of the current presidential campaign, it has made him as famous, as instantly recognisable and as talked about as anyone in America. Mr Trump figured out early on that fortune follows fame, which is all but indistinguishable from notoriety.
Mr Trump first appeared on the front page of The New York Times in 1973, with the headline "Major Landlord Accused of Anti-Black Bias in City," hardly an auspicious beginning, after the Justice Department charged the Trump Management Corporation with violating the Fair Housing Act. The case was eventually settled, with a consent decree but without Mr Trump or anyone having to admit guilt.
Mr Trump also seems to have an uncanny sense of the elements of a good story - conflict, money and sex - especially when he's the subject. Even though he made some half-hearted protests (further prolonging public attention), he surely basked in the comment of his second wife, Marla Maples, that sex with him was the best she'd ever had.
"I have always gotten much more publicity than anyone else," Mr Trump boasts, which, as his exaggerations go, is probably one of the more accurate. This ability seems rooted in a seemingly inexhaustible need for attention. Mr D'Antonio reports that "Trump begins each day with a sheaf of papers detailing where and how often his name has been mentioned in the global press.... This need to be noticed, and his drive to satisfy it, has made him a singular figure worthy of close inspection."
No amount of armchair psychoanalysis can fully explain Mr Trump's outsize personality, but Mr D'Antonio's account of his formative years suggests the source of at least some of these traits. His father, Fred, was demanding, withholding and a workaholic. Trump was a rebellious 13-year-old when his parents sent him to the New York Military Academy in 1959. "Trump was always proud of himself," Mr Dobias recalls. "He believed he was the best." He added that Mr Trump "was a conniver even then. A real pain in the ass. He would do anything to win."
Based on Never Enough, it's hard to imagine anyone who has less in common with George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt, considered by many scholars our three greatest presidents, than Donald Trump. Among their other virtues, they are revered for their honesty (Washington), modesty (Lincoln) and compassion for the poor (Roosevelt).
©2015 The New York Times News Service
Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success
Michael D'Antonio
Illustrated. Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press; 389 pp; $26.99
As pure entertainment, the race for the Republican presidential nomination has been a resounding success. Donald Trump, the star, has been by turns witty, provocative, outrageous - and always telegenic. He helped draw an estimated 24 million viewers to the first televised Republican debate, a record, and a ratings bonanza for Fox News, with which he nonetheless publicly feuded. Blithely flouting all conventions of presidential debate and decorum, Mr Trump indulged in the name-calling, personal attacks and one-liners that have vaulted him to the top of the polls.
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Never Enough is an admirably straightforward, even-handed but nonetheless damning account of Mr Trump's life, including his failed marriages and businesses and his emergence as a reality television star and presidential contender. Mr Trump provided some access before cutting off Mr D'Antonio and his research assistant after they dared to interview someone on his long list of enemies.
Out of necessity, Mr D'Antonio relies heavily on published sources, which are voluminous, considering that Mr Trump's every move has been chronicled by the media and that he's already the subject of a substantial bibliography, not to mention his 10 autobiographical and self-help books, from 1987's The Art of the Deal to this year's e-book Trump for President: Why We Need a Leader, Not a Politician.
Mr D'Antonio points out the obvious, which is that much of what Mr Trump says can euphemistically be called exaggeration, but he sheds little light on the source and scope of Mr Trump's fortune, which is his primary qualification for the presidency. Most of Mr Trump's claims - to being a great deal-maker, a great athlete, a great businessman - are hard to verify, though there seems little more than a kernel of truth to at least some of them.
This year Forbes pegs Mr Trump's wealth at $4.1 billion, which, while less than half the $9 billion Trump claims, indeed makes him rich. Much of that wealth comes from the Trump brand rather than deal-making per se. His star turn on NBC's "The Celebrity Apprentice," his licensing fees, his books, his speaking engagements, even his men's wear line, have brought in millions. He's had good divorce lawyers.
But he's hardly another Henry R Kravis or Carl C Icahn. Four of his heavily indebted casino companies filed for bankruptcy, stiffing his creditors. Citibank took possession of the ill-fated Trump Shuttle airline. Mr Trump himself narrowly escaped personal bankruptcy.
Whatever the outcome of the current presidential campaign, it has made him as famous, as instantly recognisable and as talked about as anyone in America. Mr Trump figured out early on that fortune follows fame, which is all but indistinguishable from notoriety.
Mr Trump first appeared on the front page of The New York Times in 1973, with the headline "Major Landlord Accused of Anti-Black Bias in City," hardly an auspicious beginning, after the Justice Department charged the Trump Management Corporation with violating the Fair Housing Act. The case was eventually settled, with a consent decree but without Mr Trump or anyone having to admit guilt.
Mr Trump also seems to have an uncanny sense of the elements of a good story - conflict, money and sex - especially when he's the subject. Even though he made some half-hearted protests (further prolonging public attention), he surely basked in the comment of his second wife, Marla Maples, that sex with him was the best she'd ever had.
"I have always gotten much more publicity than anyone else," Mr Trump boasts, which, as his exaggerations go, is probably one of the more accurate. This ability seems rooted in a seemingly inexhaustible need for attention. Mr D'Antonio reports that "Trump begins each day with a sheaf of papers detailing where and how often his name has been mentioned in the global press.... This need to be noticed, and his drive to satisfy it, has made him a singular figure worthy of close inspection."
No amount of armchair psychoanalysis can fully explain Mr Trump's outsize personality, but Mr D'Antonio's account of his formative years suggests the source of at least some of these traits. His father, Fred, was demanding, withholding and a workaholic. Trump was a rebellious 13-year-old when his parents sent him to the New York Military Academy in 1959. "Trump was always proud of himself," Mr Dobias recalls. "He believed he was the best." He added that Mr Trump "was a conniver even then. A real pain in the ass. He would do anything to win."
Based on Never Enough, it's hard to imagine anyone who has less in common with George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt, considered by many scholars our three greatest presidents, than Donald Trump. Among their other virtues, they are revered for their honesty (Washington), modesty (Lincoln) and compassion for the poor (Roosevelt).
©2015 The New York Times News Service