Washington Post book critic Carlos Lozada deserves hazard pay. He read, as he says, “six sycophantic pro-Trump books” and figured out what makes them tick. Apparently you, too, can write a Trump-fluffing tome, provided you have no spine, integrity, moral compass, pride, or shame.
Here are the seven characteristics of said books:
- Talk like Trump. Claim “fake news,” use nicknames (“Crooked Hillary,” “Sloppy Steve”), and be hyperbolic (“the likes of which the world has never seen!”).
- Insist he has a good side. These authors swear that Trump is kind, magnanimous, empathetic, etc., even though he’s never shown those qualities in public.
- Ignorance is strength. Trump is not stupid, ill-informed, ignorant, or intellectually lazy; instead, he has amazing instincts so he doesn't have to sweat the details. Really. They say that.
- Everyone else is lying, not Trump. Project, deflect, insist that Trump’s words don’t mean what they obviously mean. If whatever Trump says or does doesn’t align with reality, then reality is lying.
- Leave your independent moral judgment at the door. He’s not being malignant, or stupid; instead, it must be those superior instincts kicking in. Just glory in Trump’s presence and ask no questions.
- Worship his family. They’re beautiful, smart, loyal, hard-working, and beyond criticism. Just ignore the massive debt, the ill-considered business decisions, the security clearance problems — and the collusion, of course.
- Exclude and divide. There are two sides, pro-Trump and anti-Trump. Trump is leading the vanguard to vanquish and destroy the “enemy.” There can be only one. I must break you. You get the picture.
I find this useful because it provides structure to what I already know from consuming far too much of the toxic news sludge coming from this administration. This is government by the few, for the few; Trump lies and projects; they desperately want us not to think for ourselves or avail ourselves of objective reality.
“These books scarcely attempt to persuade; like Trump, they focus on the already converted,” Lozada writes. “...But arguments don’t need to be any stronger if all you hope to elicit is vigorous assent rather than debate or thought.” Don’t think, just go with your gut. If it feels good to resent and hate other people, to blame them for your problems, do it! The theme of the Trump presidency is “that certain groups matter more than others, that Trump governs only for himself, his family, and his base … there is little pretense in these volumes that Trump should be a president for all Americans or that he even wants to be.”
Lozada goes on to contrast these books with Omarosa Manigault Newman’s. It’s a long read, but worth it.