Book Report: Too Much and Never Enough

 Donald Trump’s niece, Mary Trump, has been accused of trying to take Trump down because of personal slights and a doctored will that cut her and her brother out of a legitimate share of her grandfather’s inheritance.  Certainly she is bitter, but that doesn’t change the inside look at what has to be one of the most dysfunctional, greediest, and ugliest families in history.  Maybe the Borgia family was worse, but I doubt it.

The four main characters in the book are grandfather Fred, a man who made millions by milking government contracts and cultivating ties with public officials while cutting corners and cheating on his taxes.  Mary’s father and Donald’s brother Freddie was never able to live up to his father’s expectations, but instead of cutting ties and living his own life, he continued his attempts to satisfy his father, ending up a drunk and dying at age 42.  Mary herself had a bad childhood, although she doesn’t tell us too much about the details of her life.  (She mentions marrying and divorcing a woman and raising a child in a few sentences.)

Finally, there is Donald.  What was interesting to me was that she really doesn’t tell us much that we didn’t already know.  He is cruel for the sake of being cruel, he demands loyalty but will screw over anyone whom he finds lacking, he is a bigot, sees women as inferior, lies, cheats, is ignorant, is anything but a self-made man, and can’t stand the kind of people who cheer him at his rallies.  If you didn’t know that, you haven’t been paying attention.

Dr. Trump, a psychologist, traces this back to his childhood and his relationship with his father.  I don’t buy that.  I believe you can blame your parents for your shortcomings up until you are about 18.  After that it is your life.  Father Fred Trump may have been a complete ass, a mental abuser, a cheat and a liar, but Donald is his own man.  190,000 people are dead because Donald killed them.  Kids are in cages because of Donald’s policies.  Racial relations are worse because Donald thinks he will benefit from upheaval.  Harry Truman had it right.  The buck stops here.  In the court of history, it will be Donald Trump who is guilty.