With orders of the newly released novel by Michael Wolff; “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House” being backed up multiple weeks, there is no question that the majority of Americans are more than curious as to what really goes on behind the taciturn walls of the White House.
365 days into the Trump presidency, and circumstances remain just as inconceivable as they sat 1 year ago. When more than half of the American population is clamoring to hear the previously private going-ons within the home of the President, there is no doubt that the current situation in relation to our government has changed, not necessarily for the better. Within the controversial novel, which began selling copies on January 5th, Wolff touches on various aspects, including the President’s negligence towards others, daily and nightly routines, and general sense of alarming unconcern. The novel has been raking in mixed reviews. Trump’s followers are convinced the book is just another round of fake news, written by a dubious author, while opposers suddenly have another source of proof that he is unfit for his position.
The U.S. is not the only country swept with the craze of the controversial new book, which came just shy of selling 30,000 copies during the course of its first weekend out. A commentary in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper, run by the Workers’ Party said; “The anti-Trump book is sweeping all over the world so Trump is being massively humiliated worldwide.” The same newspaper also noted that there was no surprise related to the number of books sold in such a short amount of time, including over 350,000 digital and audio sales. North Korea holds a widespread hostility toward Trump, which sparked mainly when he called their leader, Kim Jong Un, a “Little Rocket Man”. This resentment was only furthered when the president took to Twitter in a typical spitballing rampage, saying “I too have Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!”
Inside the book itself, Wolff describes Trump’s attempts at diabolically splitting couples up in order to “get his friends wives into bed”, which he says “is one of the things that made life worth living” as well as how his wife Melania was crying on the night of his election, having just learned he actually had a chance at winning. The novel also informs of the fact that Ivanka and Kushner made a supposed deal that she would run for President, her father’s own title, if the opportunity were to present itself. These allegations as well as countless others contained in the novel are extremely controversial, with people from all points on the political spectrum fact checking Wolff on multiple accounts and facts, some of which are not necessarily true.
In response to the tell-all novel, Trump yet again turned to Twitter as a way to spread his frustration and air his humiliation, saying “Michael Wolff is a total loser who made up stories in order to sell this really boring and untruthful book.” His anger was not confined to the far reaching arms of Twitter however. He also threatened legal publication of the novel, which the publisher, Henry Holt and Company, ignored while moving up the release date of the book.
Meanwhile, Steve Bannon expressed regret over his additions to the novel, apologizing for the effect that his “delay in responding to the inaccurate reporting regarding Don. Jr. has diverted attention from the president’s historical accomplishments in the first year of his presidency.” In quotes from the novel, Bannon said Robert Mueller’s prosecution team is “going to crack Don Jr. like an egg on national TV.” and called the decision to meet with the Russians “treasonous”. He has not denied any accuracy issues with these quotes, and Wolff has vouched for them by offering that he has tape recordings of the conversations between Bannon and himself. Soon after the books fallout Bannon attempted to retract his comments about the president and his family, saying “My support is also unwavering for the president and his agenda.” Soon after, Bannon stepped down from his post as executive chairman of Breitbart News on Tuesday the 9th.
The explosive effect of the release of the book was just that-explosive. Comments on Twitter rained for several days and images of the red and white cover popped up across the internet as well as newspapers, inducing conversations circulating around the gossipy and eyebrow-raising statements. It was a quick attention grab that certainly caught many people’s eyes, including Trump. Overall, the book was a quick-seller, but one that perhaps did not include what people shelled over their money for. There are several ways of analyzing it, but as the New York Times says, Wolff might as well call it “liberal catnip.”
By Callie Solberg
The Claw 