James D. Zirin

Well, all the above are true. If, at all, you've been wondering whether Trump is reality or bad dream or whether he possibly might not be, if his audacity and unabashed obnoxiousness are in fact brilliantly calculated political "genius" perhaps disguising boundless benevolence for downtrodden and meritorious alike, you can rest assured. This beautifully detailed, thoroughly cited and researched work and account, documents that he has always been like he is, abusive, duplicitous and damaging to individual and institution alike. His basic tactic throughout his business life, right from youth, has been to disinform and hobble anyone or anything preventing his personal gain. From racist slum-landlord to casino-owning mafia-hobnobbing to misogynist sex-pageant host to online education and charity conman, he's not above anything (and that's only what we know for sure!). He treats foreign powers, from large to small dictatorships, to his largesse (renting floors of his buildings at inflated prices) in exchange for kickbacks and concessions.

Reading this book (though not many people do that anymore) will reassure you that, in spite of the fact that so large of a minority support him wholeheartedly, its not just your imagination. At the same time you will feel a darker foreboding that forces perhaps even beyond Donald's understanding have been unleashed.… (mere)

I'm not precisely sure what the author was getting at with this book; I will grant you, I was reading a pre-publication copy, and things might have changed in the final version. The author discusses (mostly) the federal court for the Southern District of New York, and relates anecdotes about the judges, attorneys and cases of the 20th century and early 21st century that have figured there. It's fairly thin and superficial, and to some extent, I found the tributes to certain judges and other personnel a bit gooey in their ardour. There's also quite a lot of citations; I suppose, being an ABA book, this is to be expected, but the casual (non-legal) reader might well be baffled by them. I also got a bit of an impression that the author was settling a score or two with some swipes at a few judges in the end. Only recommended, really, if you're a lawyer (as I am), and even then, not a particularly engrossing read.… (mere)