UNPRESIDENTED

A painstaking account of the personal and business practices that somehow failed to prevent the Trumps from becoming America’s first family.

This tale of both moral and literal bankruptcy begins with the immigration of the president’s grandfather from Bavaria and proceeds in a long tally of cheats, tweets, and deceit to an all-caps bit of saber rattling against Iran in July 2018. With hundreds of endnotes to attest to the depth of her research, Brockenbrough (Alexander Hamilton, Revolutionary, 2017, etc.) sets out to build a character portrait of her subject by documenting patterns of behavior, and in that she succeeds convincingly. Printed in blue ink that does neither the text nor the photographs any favors, it’s nevertheless an invaluable resource for student research; as a cover-to-cover read, interest may flag under the weight of details of suits and settlements, hirings and firings, boasts vs. outright lies, alleged and indicted malfeasance by a large cast of slimy associates, and like intrigues. Also, though perhaps justifiably focused on the Donald, the author so rarely spares a glance at the women in his family and circle that the overall picture lacks a possibly significant dimension. Extensive backmatter includes capsule bios of the members of Trump’s campaign and legal teams, biographical and presidential timelines, and evidence (to mid-2018) of his Russian connections.

A thorough, timely guide to a wretched hive of scum and villainy.