Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America

Written by:
Maggie Haberman
Narrated by:
Maggie Haberman

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
59
Narrator
22
Release Date
October 2022
Duration
17 hours 22 minutes
Summary
The #1 New York Times bestseller.

“This is the book Trump fears most.” - Axios

“Will be a primary source about the most vexing president in American history for years to come.” - Joe Klein, The New York Times

'A uniquely illuminating portrait.' - Sean Wilentz, The Washington Post

“[A] monumental look at Donald Trump and his presidency.” — David Shribman, Los Angeles Times

From the Pulitzer-Prize-winning New York Times reporter who has defined Donald J. Trump's presidency like no other journalist, Confidence Man is a magnificent and disturbing reckoning that chronicles his life and its meaning from his rise in New York City to his tortured post-presidency.

Few journalists working today have covered Donald Trump more extensively than Maggie Haberman. And few understand him and his motivations better. Now, demonstrating her majestic command of this story, Haberman reveals in full the depth of her understanding of the 45th president himself, and of what the Trump phenomenon means.

Interviews with hundreds of sources and numerous interviews over the years with Trump himself portray a complicated and often contradictory historical figure. Capable of kindness but relying on casual cruelty as it suits his purposes.  Pugnacious. Insecure. Lonely. Vindictive. Menacing. Smarter than his critics contend and colder and more calculating than his allies believe. A man who embedded himself in popular culture, galvanizing support for a run for high office that he began preliminary spadework for 30 years ago, to ultimately become a president who pushed American democracy to the brink.

The through-line of Trump’s life and his presidency is the enduring question of what is in it for him or what he needs to say to survive short increments of time in the pursuit of his own interests.    

Confidence Man is also, inevitably, about the world that produced such a singular character, giving rise to his career and becoming his first stage. It is also about a series of relentlessly transactional relationships. The ones that shaped him most were with girlfriends and wives, with Roy Cohn, with George Steinbrenner, with Mike Tyson and Don King and Roger Stone, with city and state politicians like Robert Morgenthau and Rudy Giuliani, with business partners, with prosecutors, with the media, and with the employees who toiled inside what they commonly called amongst themselves the “Trump Disorganization.”  

That world informed the one that Trump tried to recreate while in the White House. All of Trump’s behavior as President had echoes in what came before.  In this revelatory and newsmaking book, Haberman brings together the events of his life into a single mesmerizing work. It is the definitive account of one of the most norms-shattering and consequential eras in American political history.
Reviews
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Doreen B.

I love how people hate Donald Trump sooo much… they have to purchase a book to wallow in the hate.

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Elizabeth W.

Utter garbage as one can expect from Haberman, a desperate attempt to stay relevant.

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Anonymous

Absolutely a work of mindless rubbish - the author is simply attempting to seek attention for herself, a desperate grasp at relevance and fame without thought given to the facts about President Donald J. Trump over the Fake News. May this work be dismissed to the trash bin of history.

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Anonymous

Well, the author can read... and that's where it ends for me. Anyone who disliked Trump before will still dislike him.... in spite of how well off the country was with him in office. Lowest unemployment in virtually all categories, including women.. manufacturing jobs that Obama said "will never come back" were coming back; he got rid of the disastrous NAFTA crap; was building the wall, sealed our southern border which Biden is just now coming to grips with the same answer; recognition of China as our main adversary and threat to our future and stability are just some of his attributions. This author refuses to acknowledge ANY of that so there's no questioning of where her political sentiments lie.

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Anonymous

Love Maggie Haberman! However this book was not as good as I hoped it would be. Basically it was a recap of what we already knew for the most part. Trump is not a good human. Maggie's reading of the book was hard to follow as there did not seem to be pauses as the end of a sentence. Towards the end she got better. All in all it was still lot of knowledge to those about a corrupt president to those who don't keep up on the the news.

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Anonymous

Best book I’ve read about Trump’s presidency. It backs up what has been said in other books, and with added detail .haberman is a very respected journalist. For the horrible reviews, those are from people who love Trump, voted for him and can’t face the facts that have been disclosed about him. The only way you can dismis this book as rubbish is if you can’t face the truth. If you have an open mind, and want to learn what really happened, great book.

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Kurt K.

Maggie Haberman does an amazing job at showing who the real Donald Trump is.

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Robert Scott

This book shows us a real Confidence Man!

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Rachel W.

Brilliantly presented portrait of a vapid huckster who ended up as president. Old school, just-the-facts-ma’am reporting at its finest. And I loved the NYC politics historical context. Thank you, Maggie. We need more like you.

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Anonymous

An up close, in depth look at a modern day megalomaniac.

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George G.

I have read over three dozen books about former President Trump. This is the best one documenting the historical record for future historians to know what really happened. Thank you Maggie Haberman for your service.

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Anonymous

This is a well written, fascinating journey that analyzes the events and people that shaped the complicated man who became our 45th president.

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Edward A.

Thorough and illuminating picture of our 45th President’s tenure and tantrums.

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Susan B.

A very good listen! Will listen to this book again!

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Stacey O.

Not much new to hear about but enjoyed the chronological order of his chaos.

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