The Corruption of the American Republic

David Frum did an outstanding job. Very well written and researched. A first rate account of the most corrupt president in American history. I encourage people to read this book. Donald Trump is a fraud and this book explains why with solid facts.

David Frum is a very thoughtful observer of current trends. I was drawn to his reference to Desmond Tutu that reconciliation will eventually be needed to get us past this dreadful era of Trumpocracy. I woulf recommend this book.

As long as you're not a Faux News Channel addict, and you watch or read the real news, most of the information in Trumpocracy has been made public. The author puts all these disjointed facts into logical categories where the categories lead from one to the next, helping the reader realize we're in a lot of trouble. The author shows that even after Trump, the country will have a difficult time scrapping off the cooked-on residue for years.

A straight forward response to a very dark period in our Republic. I agree with the Trump “Gifts” that the author reveals. One of the best books on Trump, and the past election process, that I have read.

I struggle(d) with explaining to my self and fellow republicans why I could not (and would never) vote for Trump. I couldn't express my resolve in the knowledge that I knew I was making the right moral decision as a human being and American CITIZEN. I couldn't reconcile why I suddenly was aware that my relationship with the GOP was damaged, and I no longer was willing to ride along as they slid further and faster into moral bankruptcy. David Frum gave volume to my inner wordless voice. Thank You, David!

"Trumpocracy has left Americans less safe against foreign dangers, has diverted their money from its proper purposes to improper pockets, has worked to bias law enforcement in favor of the powerful, and has sought to intimidate media lest they report things the public most needs to know." Thus David Frum sets the stage to explain how Donald Trump undermines democracy in his new book, Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic.

If there is any surprise in this line of argument, it lies in the identity of its author. David Frum is a card-carrying conservative, or neoconservative, if you prefer the current jargon. He wrote speeches for George W. Bush and served as a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. (He is now a senior editor at The Atlantic and a CNN commentator.) What sets Frum apart from today's kneejerk "conservatives" is that he has been in the Never Trump camp since the New York developer turned reality TV star declared his campaign for the White House.

In Trumpocracy, Frum methodically surveys the damage Donald Trump and his minions have been inflicting on the American people ever since November 6, 2016. For example, in a chapter entitled "Plunder," he details the blatant corruption that is enriching Trump and his family. (Frum notes that "the United States ranked a not exactly reassuring eighteenth on Transparency International's corruption index, behind Hong Kong and Belgium.") But the author doesn't place all the blame on Donald Trump personally. "The man inside the oval center did not act alone. He held his power with the connivance of others. They executed his orders and empowered his whims for crass and cowardly reasons of their own: partisanship, ambition, greed for gain, eagerness for attention, ideological zeal, careerist conformity, or—in the worst cases—malicious glee in the wreck of things they could never have built themselves."

Frum is clearly convinced (as am I) that Donald Trump is in the White House "in some considerable part by clandestine help from Russia." Like Guardian reporter Luke Harding in another recent book, Collusion, Frum believes the evidence clearly shows that the Trump campaign collaborated with Russian officials operating on behalf of President Vladimir Putin. And he deplores the shameless efforts by Right-Wing media as well as the White House to discredit those who are attempting to uncover the truth about the collusion. For instance, he quotes a pro-Trump author speaking on CNN: "'There's no violation of law if, in fact, the campaign colluded with Russia, whatever that means.'" Come again? How is collusion in this context not treasonous?

Curiously (for a conservative), Frum appears to be troubled by the near-total dominance of the Republican Party in today's political scene—and the underhanded tactics used to achieve it. "Republicans entered the 2016 cycle controlling all elected branches of government in half the states in the country, their best showing since the 1920s. Democrats controlled only seven states, their worst showing since Reconstruction." Frum notes with concern that voter suppression has played a major role in this trend. However, he doesn't mention gerrymandering, which has doubtless been an equally important factor.

Frum also examines the damage to US foreign policy and our country's reputation around the world. He writes, "[Trump] never understood that America's power arose not only from its own wealth and its own military force, but from its centrality to a network of friends and allies." The author is also deeply concerned about the multiple attacks from Trump and his staff on the national security agencies. He fears the possibility that the FBI, the CIA, and the other intelligence agencies—as well as the Pentagon—may drift into the habit of keeping future Presidents isolated and acting essentially on their own.

As other commentators have done, Frum explores the rise in support for violent white-nationalist groups as a result of Donald Trump's campaign and his time in the White House. But of even greater concern is the much broader trend toward the politics of resentment. "The phrase 'white privilege' transitioned from the academy into common speech in the Obama years—at exactly the moment that millions of white Americans were experiencing the worst social trauma since the Great Depression." Not only did Trump capitalize on that development; as well all know, he is driving the wedge even deeper between whites and people of color.

There is little in Trumpocracy that is truly new. We've learned most of these lessons from others over the past two years. Frum's contribution is to compile the facts and the analysis into one thin volume—and carefully document every assertion. By contrast with other recent books about the Trump Era, one-quarter of Frum's book consists of notes. The result is a case against Donald Trump that is difficult to refute.

The narration was good & understandable. The author tied so many of the loose ends together for me. I have a good concept of what's going on with this administration but this audiobook was informative. A definite read/listen. The only negative is the ending chapter leaves me very apprehensive & nervous for what could be coming on the very near future.

David Frum gives us the social background and explanation of the progress of democracy that has led the American people to vote for Donald Trump to be our president. He writes as a conservative Republican but is refreshingly non partisan in his recounting of the Trump presidency. He gives praise, acknowledgement and criticism where due. An interesting read.

This is a good book, one that focuses on the corruption that is Donald Trump's method. The author suggests that we become better citizens, realizing that we must return to our governments that had civility and honor.

David Frum wrote an excellent book on the current administration. His in-depth reporting is a balanced look at today's day-to-day processes in the various departments of our government. I was very impressed by his very thoughtful insights and clear descriptions of current events.

For one of conservatism’s staunchest supporters to boldly name Trump’s actions as destructive to democracy is refreshing. Read this book, then boycott the GOP until they clean up their party and play by the rules we have established over our history.

I read a lot of political books. Every one tells about the same story but with a different prospective and twist. Considering this author background you have to respect his honesty,courage and experience. This is a easy read lots of info and book notes. But when you read all these books and regardless where these authors come from and their backgrounds. When all the stories and independent research generally leads to the same conclusions. You must realize that there is much more truth than entertainment value in reading on this political subject. I never had any desire to read fiction.Real life is to intriguing and a mysterious. So I read more for info then enjoyment. This book provides both.

Mr. Frum's analysis is impressive and is overall very optimistic in our democratic (little d) society and with our sense of patriotism and community. Our culture of looking after each other and working together rises above one flawed political actor, he seems to say. I agree with a lot of what he says and I hope a great number of people will read this book and ask themselves the questions Mr. Forum puts to his readers. Good job!

I'm a huge David Frum fan. I've been reading his columns on the Atlantic a while now. I appreciate how he's been able to stick out on his own beliefs even while being ostracized from the conservative media machine at Fox News (they won't invite him back any time soon) and the Wall Street Journal. His speeches are fantastic (I suggest you listen), and his message on the eroding power of the current administration is more thoughtful than the typical haranguing you tend to hear. He's able to admit that probably nothing will come out of the collusion investigation, and that much as he hates the man who occupies Oval office, long term institutional damage is being done from leakers who (rights) want to work against him.

But that's Frum.

Frum's BOOK on the other hand is not a good read. It reads more like an assortment of articles rather than a coherent interesting book. It's fairly disorganized at times, and often scattered. For example, there's a chapter called "Betrayers" and more than half of that chapter has almost nothing to do with people betraying their party/institutions/principles, leading one to wonder why it's there in the first place.

More importantly, he presumes you're on his side (which I am) from the very beginning. Instead of walking you through methodically on how to reach an assessment on a particular subject, he'll just tell you what to think, and his follow-up examples don't truly prove his point. This isn't a book you can give to someone who is either for Trump or has no opinion, to convince them of what's actually happening and the danger it poses. It reads more like a list of complaints than a central undeniable narrative.

I was hopeful that this book would be truly thoughtful, nuanced, and provide a glimpse into the gravity of what things we're NOT reading about in the paper that're far more dangerous than what makes the headlines. Unfortunately, that's not the case here. For a book that's supposedly less about "the man" of trump than the institutional weakness that is facilitating his ability to erode our customs/norms/character as a nation...It talks a lot more about Trump the man that I would've thought. .

Just because this book is ABOUT something important and his MESSAGE is on point, it doesn't mean the execution was done all that well. And that's the problem.

Mr. Drum writes well here just as he does in the Atlantic and in interview. Avoiding hyperbole for effective measured analysis. He strikes at the heart of the Trump "problem," the haves and have-most are as ships passing in the night. Well worth reading. CEW

Whether you agree with Frum’s point of view or not, this is a meticulously written and thoughfull piece. His phrase “The largest and most loyal subset of those voters were men who felt devalued in the economy and disrespected in the culture, who chafed at being scolded for their “privilege” even as they succumbed to disability, drugs, and early death.“ sticks with me as an answer to why this happened.

David Frum is a conservative through and through. I'm a liberal through and through. But I've always appreciated Frum. Although we disagree on policy details, he has always had a clear and reasonable argument (unlike many conservative voices). The reason "Trumpocracy" appealed to me was not merely because it's critical of Trump, but because Frum is a conservative voice that I need to hear.

"Trumpocracy," Frum states, is a study of rulership, of how Trump gained power, how he has used that power, and why that power has not been effectively checked.

I enjoyed the book. A lot of it is known to anyone paying attention, but there were some details that Frum brought to light. The book is thoroughly documented and sourced. Each chapter is dedicated to a part of Trumpocracy: from those conservatives that bent the knee for power gains, to Trump and Kushner using the Presidency for financial gain, to Trump using authoritarian tactics.

As with anything Trump, it's an incredibly frustrating read, knowing what Trump has and is doing to democratic values here and abroad. Frum has written an excellent chronicle that documents the many ways Trump aims to increase his power while decimating democratic and liberal values.

Should be read by liberals and conservatives alike.

This book has the edge that fire and fury wishes it had. While not as fun as the aforementioned work, Frum carries far more dignity, care, and respect into this precision takedown of the trump presidency.

This book should be read together with Fire and Fury. The latter presents a laughable review of dysfunction in Trump’s White House and the former a sobering account of a complete breakdown of ethical standards and criminal behavior threatening our democracy and role in global affairs. This book was written by a conservative who voted for Clinton because his fear of Trump’s ascendancy to the presidency would be this country’s downfall.

An outstanding and detailed account of the many ways Trumpocracy threatens our very system of government. I also appreciated the final chapter, which after such distressing reading, gave a number of reasons to be hopeful... and some inspiration for all of us to work in our own individual lives to correct the problems that brought Trump into play to begin with.

Brilliant book filled with insight and clarity into the corrosive and corrupt world of Trump. A clarion call to citizens and friends of America alike. It captures the damage being done and calls out for action. Outstanding and inspiring at a time when quality, courage and hope are lacking.

I voted for Hillary Clinton and although I'm a conservative---Donald Trump seemed to be too dangerous. David Frum is right to criticize the president's undisciplined and often irrational rants. The author highlights Trump's erratic tweets and often buffoonish behavior. Who can disagree?
Nonetheless, Frum refuses to acknowledge the major accomplishments of the last year. If nothing else, investors trust this administration. Frum focusses way too much attention on Steve Bannon and Michael Flynn. Both men long ago were shoved out the door. Trump has replaced them with top-notch people. The president also doesn't micromanage. This may have especially benefited the military. I expect the next three years of the Trump administration to be highly successful. And yes, I now am quite pleased Hillary lost and I was proven to have been overly pessimistic. David Frum needs to take a deep breath and take another look at the current occupant of the White House.

When reading Trumpocracy keep in mind that David Frum is a Republican of unimpeachable credentials and a solid record of public service. Now senior editor of The Atlantic,he has spent his life in political journalism. I've read his work for many years and always found him to be challenging and well informed. Trumpocracy is his most important contribution to American political life.

Knowing Mr. Frum's background impresses his readers with the pain and urgency with which he must have written Trumpocracy. In a series of twelve well written chapters Frum analyzes the rise of Donald Trump and the disastrous 2016 campaign which unexpectedly put him in power. Then he details the chicanery, open corruption, arrogance, and sleaze that have marked the first year of the Trump Administration. The unfolding revelations of Trump's deep connections and shady dealings with Russian oligarchs and their kleptocratic government are also covered, as are the manifold incompetences and errors which seem to emanate from the Oval Office on a daily basis. In what must have been the most painful pages Frum has ever written he exposes the willingness of Republican office holders, with many of whom he has worked and for whom he once felt great respect, to aid and abet the Trump disaster. Similarly, he unflinchingly records the methods used by Trump and his campaign to suborn the votes of Americans desperate for change and con them into supporting a man who had no solid platform (nor desire for one) to help them.

Frum assures us there is still Hope in his eponymous final chapter detailing the rising forces of concerned Americans who are more civically engaged than ever before in their lives. As one of those Americans, I found Trumpocracy to be both frightening and a metaphorical call to arms to truly make America great again.

“Fire And Fury” was the sugary appetizer to this main course.
“Trumpocracy” is a compelling read that includes satisfying sources’ notes. David Frum offers hope too in the rising awareness of losing our rights as citizens to authoritarian rule.

I came across this book on the store Kindle and wanted to see what this nomenclature TRUMPOCRACY said about the minds of the American political thinker. My intrigue at the title quickly evolved into an understanding of just how perverse this election of The Donald to the office of the President of The United States has been with its upending of norms and pervasive lies. Frum matter of factly eschews in great detail the myriad of events that comprise the evolution of TRUMPISM leaving me with little doubt of the concerns we all need to have to holding our officials, courts, press and electorate to higher standards of morality decency and accountability.

I devoured this book as soon as it arrived. As expected, Mr. Frum is brilliant and insightful. This book is less about the corruption, dishonesty and histrionics of the president and more about the opportunists who enable him while many of us are watching the subtle decay of our democracy and democracies around the world. This book is a must read for anyone who wants to prevent the slow rise of autocracies.

This is a good overview of what Trumpism (not just Trump, but the underlying trends that have enabled his triumph) is doing to the U.S. The book doesn't include great revelations but it's well written and engaging. What it portraits isn't pretty, though. In the future, many millions of people will have to face very tough conversations with their grown-up children, as they are responsible for this disaster by actively supporting it.

Some context:
I'm reading this book in early February 2018, less than two months after it came off the press (the book's most recent quote comes from October 2017). Fewer than 100 people have reviewed or commented on this book here. About the same time this one was published, another Trump book was published: Fire and Fury, Inside the Trump Whitehouse, to great media ballyhoo. Over 5,700 readers/buyers weighed in on that book.

What's the difference? Fire and Fury's wall-to-wall media coverage, and the tantalizing promise of really juicy "here's what they say was said just outside the Oval Office" type second-hand/third-hand stuff that's close to rumour and gossip. THAT's what's sells. Too bad.

Trumpocracy, however, isn't predicated on the easy stuff (rumour or gossip). Instead, in the author's own words, "My topic is President Trump's power: how he has gained it, how he has used it, and why it has not yet been effectively checked. This book is the story of those who enable, empower, support and collaborate with Donald Trump."

If you want verifiable facts (most chapters have dozens of them; actual quotes, often lifted in total, to avoid cherry-picking to make a point), this is the book. If you want a systematic examination of Trump's power, this is your book.

If you've wondered, even in passing, how an individual of Trump's demeanour and predillections got to be President, how he maintains his staff AND how he profits by it, this is your book. The answers are all here, in chapters entitled Enables, Appeasers, Betrayals and Plunder.

You can't make this stuff up because it's beyond imagining.

Frum’s exceptionally well-researched and reasoned book does something I never thought a book on Trump could do- give me hope. Thank God there are still principled conservatives out there - I can only hope that this book gets the media play and readership it richly deserves. Bravo, Mr Frum.

Strong writing and clear facts that are hard to ignore. I actually caught wind of this book because of an organized effort that was being carried out by Trump supporters to slam this book online. I was encouraged to go on sites like Facebook and the store and trash the book. I figured, why not buy and read it, then write an objective review. I am by nature a libertarian and was not thrilled with either candidate in 2016. But this book grabbed me pretty quick and really started to open my eyes as to what has happened to our country. Good book.

This book has many ideas and historical tidbits that constantly amaze me, so it exceeds my expectations by far. Even though I read a lot and watch much news, there was so much new and well presented that I'd give it top marks.

Frum nails it. All Americans who want to understand the insidious threat our democratic Republic is facing today should read this book. It speaks not to Blue Americans or Red Americans but to ALL Americans to wake up and understand this plutocratic danger and to more than ever cherish and protect our institutions. E Pluribus Unum, From Many One.

Rather short book. Content comes across as largely a compendium of quotes of journalists published duing the past year or so. Read the book after seeing lengthy televsion interview of author, after which the book itself seemed to add little.

At all times keep in mind David Frum writes from the very myopic & limited view point of a privileged white middle-class Republican male who at first supported Trump & has yet to realize that "America" is a hemisphere and North America contains not just the USoA but also Canada & Mexico whose majority is composed of indigenous Native Americans with brown skin.

This important new book by David Frum is thoughtfulness personified. It’s quiet; it’s reflective; it’s wise. There are no hysterics, no exaggerations, no fake news. He’s got endless pages of notes at the close, so the references and sources are carefully verified.
David Frum is a former speechwriter for George W. Bush, and despite our political differences, I absolutely respect him as a patriot who loves democracy and upholds our country’s lasting ideals. We’ll get through the Trump years, he says calmly, and America will be better and stronger as we forcefully return to our core values.
I’d share some quotes or soundbites, but trust me . . . there are great lines and insights all through these pages. Get the book for yourself; you will not regret the time spent reading what he has to say.

“Trumpocracy” is a wonderful addition to our documenting and understanding of the Trump Presidency. Its author, David Frum, has impeccable conservative credentials. Indeed, among other things, Frum was a speechwriter of George W Bush and the creator of the term “axis of evil”. Frum is hardly a man of the left.

In spite of his credentials, Frum clearly loathes Trump and everything that he represents. Trump is patently a liar. To quote Frum:

“No American president in history – no national political figure since at least Senator Joe McCarthy – has trafficked more in untruths than Donald Trump”.

Frum then goes on to list some of the Trump lies in more detail including the birther hoax; that he won the popular vote were it not the votes of five million illegal aliens; that he drew the largest inaugural crowd in history; that New Jersey Muslims cheered the events of 9/11; that he denied that his campaign communicated with Russia about hacking Hillary’s campaign; that he enacted more bills than any president in his first 100 days; etc. The list could go on for pages.

But it’s more than just Trump. The man has enablers. Again, to quote Frum:

“It often seems that, like Stalin’s cabinet ministers, Fox News’ hosts compete to offer the most abject flattery to a president who watches more TV than any other in history”.

Trump has been a disaster for the US. He has not nor ever will “Make America Great Again”. Instead, he has diminished the great republic. “The government of the United States seem to have made common cause with the planet’s thugs, crooks, and dictators against its own ideals.” His cronies “pin the flag to their lapels before commencing the day’s work of lying, obstructing, and corrupting.”

David Frum’s “Trumpocracy” is a tour de force. I have previously read “Fire and Fury” to which some people may compare it. Be in no doubt that “Trumpocracy” is a much finer book. It is better written and better argued. In fact, to understand the America of 2018, there is no better book to read than “Trumpocracy”.

This book should be required reading for anyone in an American Government class, anyone taking a political science class. I am a democrat, and with Trump's republican party, I have grown disgusted with the clown show, the blatant lies, the bigotry, and the ever-so-growing partisan divide in Congress. I am sure every republican in Congress fully knows that what Trump is doing is wrong, the criminal acts are treasonous, etc. They never speak up; for them, it's party before country, party before saving the democracy of the nation. It is refreshing to read something written by a republican that puts partisan issues aside and speaks the truth about how we got here in the first place, and then explores Trump's first disastrous year, and Mueller's probe. As Frum correctly points out, this clown show would have been over already if it weren't for the fact that today's Congress refuses to speak up any horrible policy, anything stupid he does, such as antagonizing our greatest allies and befriending hostile dictators.
This is must-read for any Trump supporter, that is if you can tear them away from Fox News long enough.

After I finished reading David Frum's book titled, Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic, I started to wonder who else was reading it. I admit that I knew I would like the book because I was confident that Frum would provide a cogent and incisive case against President Trump. As a conservative and Republican, I wonder if Frum still maintains a receptive audience among those readers. I wonder how many Trump supporters will read this book. As we become comfortable in our respective partisan alliances, I wonder if there's a chance for the messages in one echo chamber to break into another.

Rating: Four-star (I like it)

David Frum, a former speechwriter for George W. Bush, has written or co-written nine books. In this one he focuses on Trump's behavior as a politician. He also examines the other politicians who enable him and the citizens who voted for him. He finds that the latter did so with some justification -- despite the fact that it should have been clear to them that Trump would not keep his facile promises. On page xv, he writes:

"Trump gained the presidency thanks in great part to voters disgusted by a status quo that was ceasing to work for more and more of them. The largest and most loyal subset of those voters were men who felt devalued in the economy and disrespected in the culture, who chafed at being scolded for their 'privilege' even as they succumbed to disability, drugs, and early death. Trump has not kept faith with those voters. But they have kept faith with him. For fear of them, Trump's party stays bolted to him. Members of his party may denounce him in 'on background' interviews. His own staff will leak their disgust at his antics and cruelties. Yet whatever these powerful people say in private, they continue to enable him in public. It is their public actions, despite their private qualms, that sustain Trumpocracy."

The picture he paints is grim. Yet he closes the book with a chapter called "Hope" in which he exhorts every American to rise to Trump's unprecedented challenge to democracy. As he notes, it may be our finest hour.

Author of Theocracy, David Frum, should have heeded his own counsel: “My choice of timing imposes on this project many risks of error and misunderstanding.” Precisely. In his rush to lead the Bash Trump series of books, Frum has “misunderestimated” Trump the President. Rather, he has assumed evil motives and anticipated bumbling errors based on his personal hatred of Trump.
His book is proof that you can’t write history until it has happened. Similarly, you can’t identify true prophets until their prophecies are fulfilled. At the outset, Frum claims to be the self-appointed prophet savior of American democracy. He concludes his book with a statement of his self-sacrifice: “I will vote for the candidate who rejects my preferences and offends my opinions. (In fact, I already have voted for her.)”
September 20, 2017, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. President Trump has been in office exactly eight months, and Frum declares, “Trump’s government has failed not only because of indifference and incompetence, although he abounds in both, but because from the start it has been redirected from the service of the public to the aggrandizement of one domineering man and his shamelessly grasping extended family.” (page xiii)
Déja vue. George W. Bush, for whom Frum was a speechwriter, had only been in office eight months when terrorists struck the World Trade Center Towers. Now, honestly, shouldn’t Frum have known you can’t judge a president’s whole legacy that early in his first term?
Then, in the concluding paragraph of Frum’s introduction, he writes: “He has allowed foreign states and local politicians to tamper with the integrity of American elections to his own benefit…He has alienated allies, appeased large enemies, and goaded small ones to the edge of war. He has brutally inflamed the ethnic and class divisions that empowered him in the first place. He has enriched himself in government in a way that disheartens every honest public official, and invites dishonest ones to imitate him.” He means Trump, according to Frum, but the accusations sounded to me remarkably applicable to Barack Obama.
Nevertheless, I continued reading. Chapter One: “Constitutional democracy is founded on a commitment first and foremost to the rules of the game. The losers in any round of play agree to accept their loss, because they believe they will soon have another turn; the winners accept limits on their gains because they anticipate that next time they may number among the losers.”
That is one of the most true statements readers will find in this book. If he believes that, then why does Frum write 238 pages siding with the Democrats, the media, the RINOS, and the academic elites who have refused to accept their loss of the election? He and they can’t believe “the deplorables” won!
Frum provides 44 pages of Notes as documentation—almost all cite news outlets: CNN, MSNBC, NYTimes, WashingtonPost, Twitter—filtered bias. Where are the first-hand interviews? As for Frum’s own bias, here’s just one example of his estimation of Donald Trump: “I have written about the corruption the candidacy and presidency of Donald Trump have wrought on Americans as a people…As President Trump is cruel, vengeful, egoistic, ignorant, lazy, avaricious, and treacherous, so we must be kind, forgiving, responsible, informed, hardworking, generous and patriotic. As Trump’s enablers are careless, cynical, shortsighted, morally obtuse, and rancorous, so Trump’s opponents must be thoughtful, idealistic, wise, morally sensitive, and conciliatory. ‘They go low, we go high,’ a wise woman said.” (pgs. 234-235)
Frum’s OPINIONS—echoes of biased news media as his only documentation with very little attention to Fox News and to the Freedom Caucus in Congress. As for his false prophecies, well….check these two on page 92.
“Strong advocates for Israel choked back their revulsion against a candidate who pledged to move the US embassy to Jerusalem and abrogate Barack Obama’s Iran deal. Within weeks of taking office, Trump defaulted on both commitments.”
WRONG.
Another, on page 134: “A president beholden to Russia had been installed in the Oval Office.” The Mueller investigation is still searching for the crime of Trump’s campaign collusion with Russia although plenty of evidence has been revealed that Obama knew Russia was tampering with our election and did nothing, allowing upper levels of the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the FISA court to plot against Trump’s campaign.
Frum considered it a joke to say “it fell to Donald Trump to deliver on Barack Obama’s promise of ‘the most transparent administration ever.’” (page 171)
Page 186: “President Trump already is being displaced—first by his own disavowal of ordinary responsibility, then by the countermeasures being put in place against him by the national security agencies.” I suppose Frum approves of the secret actions and motives of the unelected bureaucrats Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, Rob Rosenstein, and James Comey to thwart the will of the electorate.
I could go on. Check Frum’s take on the infamous “Muslim travel ban” (page 178-9). And of course, the whole book was written before NATO allies started paying their back dues, before Congress passed tax reform and the economy soared, before North Korea discontinued its missile testing and agreed to come to the negotiating table. Donald Trump is making significant progress toward Making America Great Again, but Frum has already written his administration off as a disaster.
I recommend reading Media Madness by Howard Kurtz for an alternative view. Then check out my review of Trumpocracy with a library copy of the book. Don’t waste your money, though. This one should end up in the “dust bin of history.”

Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic by David Frum

“Trumpocracy” is a solid book of those who enable, empower, support and collaborate with Donald Trump. Senior editor at the Atlantic and author of nine books including the bestseller The Right Man, David Frum provides the public with yet another conservative voice who has taken a public stance against Trump’s subversion of norms and the paralysis of governance. This interesting 325-page book includes the following twelve chapters: Chapter 1: Pre-existing Conditions Chapter 2: Enablers Chapter 3: Appeasers Chapter 4: Plunder Chapter 5: Betrayals Chapter 6: Enemies of the People Chapter 7: Rigged System Chapter 8: America Alone Chapter 9: Autoimmune Disorder Chapter 10: Resentments Chapter 11: Believers Chapter 12: Hope.

Positives:
1. A well-written, concise book. Frum writes with clarity.
2. I’m always interested in the political views of reasonable authors and intellectuals. Frum falls into this category.
3. The author takes great pride in providing links to notes so that the reader can corroborate the compelling claims of the book.
4. The introduction does not waste time with what this book is all about. “Trumpocracy has left Americans less safe against foreign dangers, has diverted their money from its proper purposes to improper pockets, has worked to bias law enforcement in favor of the powerful, and has sought to intimidate media lest they report things the public most needs to know. To shrug and say, “What does it all matter?” is not only to dismiss the poor and the vulnerable but to submit your own interests to the mercy of the greedy and unscrupulous. It is to submit to life as a subject rather than a citizen.”
5. Conspiracies debunked. “The hoax almost instantly became decisive in the Republican Party’s presidential politics. Donald Trump seized on the Birther hoax in 2011, shouldering aside its early promoters to emerge as the nation’s preeminent denier of Obama’s Americanism.”
6. Clearly discloses Trump’s rise to power. “Donald Trump did not create the vulnerabilities he exploited. They awaited him. The irresponsibility of American elites, the arrogance of party leaders, the insularity of the wealthy: those and more were the resources Trump used on his way to power.”
7. The provocations of Trump. “Whatever else Trump may fail to do—staff a government, enact a program, safeguard US classified secrets, relieve disasters on Puerto Rico—there is one thing at which he never fails: provoking outrage among the people whom Trump supporters regard as overentitled and underdeserving: “the New York theater and arts and croissants crowd,” as Rush Limbaugh calls them.”
8. Keen observations. “While the party elite coalesced upon more immigration, less secure health coverage, and one more Bush, the rank and file were frantically signaling: less immigration, better health coverage, and no more Bushes.”
9. Does a great job of capturing Trump’s many lowlights. From Trump, “The US has become a dumping ground for everybody else’s problems. When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us [sic]. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.”
10. A repressive kleptocracy. “What is spreading today is repressive kleptocracy, led by rulers motivated by greed rather than by the deranged idealism of Hitler or Stalin or Mao. Such rulers rely less on terror and more on rule twisting, the manipulation of information, and the co-option of elites. Their goal is self-enrichment; the corrosion of the rule of law is the necessary means. As a shrewd local observer explained to me on a visit to Hungary in early 2016, “The main benefit of controlling a modern bureaucratic state is not the power to persecute the innocent. It is the power to protect the guilty.” “The satisfying assurance that the president is appointing the fittest individuals—and not seeking “to build up fortunes for himself and his family”—is precisely what is most lacking under Trumpocracy.”
11. The two perverse factors that strengthened Trump against the congressional Republicans. “The first factor was the stark unpopularity of much of what the congressional Republican leadership wished to do. The second unlikely factor enhancing Trump’s power over Congress was Trump’s own unpopularity.”
12. Trumpocracy in a nutshell. “Trumpocracy as a system of power rests not on deregulation but on nonregulation, not on deconstructing the state but on breaking the state in order to plunder the state.”
13. Fake news! “The 2016 presidential campaign introduced Americans to fake news as a tool of power. A term that had originated to describe intentional lying was redefined by Trump to dismiss honest reporting.”
14. The Russian influence. “Russia mounted a costly and aggressive espionage campaign to help elect Donald Trump and congressional Republicans and to defeat Hillary Clinton and congressional Democrats.”
15. The world’s perception of Trump. “Foreign leaders quickly perceived that Trump could easily be manipulated, but never reasoned with.”
16. The book is full of profound statements. “In the world as at home, systems that serve the interests of all endure better than systems that oppress many to serve a few.”
17. Trump’s issues with the law. “Under a president who despises law even more than the most impatient general, a general’s instincts become even more dangerous to him, to the government, and to the nation.”
18. Excuses! “Salena Zito, writing in the Atlantic in September 2016, postulated that Trump’s supporters take him seriously but not literally. The phrase would become one of the most famous of the Trump era, also an all-purpose excuse.”
19. Interesting perspective. “If conservatives become convinced that they cannot win democratically, they will not abandon conservatism. They will reject democracy.”
20. Provides a chapter on hope moving forward. “Trump has repelled a generation of young people from conservatism and Republicanism.”

Negatives:
1. Not as insightful as other books of this ilk but it is reasonably captures what Trump’s presidency represents.
2. Lacks supplementary visual materials like charts and diagrams that would compliment the excellent narrative.
3. Nothing really new here but just better summarized.

In summary, I really enjoyed this book. Frum writes with clarity and makes keen observations. He is a conservative with a conscience and has made a compelling case against Trump’s style of presidency and the potential damage against American democracy. Filled with notes and supporting information, Frum takes much care and providing unequivocal evidence to support his views. I recommend it!

Further suggestions: “How Democracies Die” by Steven Levitsky, “Conscience of a Conservative” by Barry Goldwater, “The Price of Politics” by Bob Woodward, “Up from Liberalism” by William Buckley Jr., “Capitalism and Freedom” by Milton Freedman, “How the Right Lost Its Mind” by Charles J. Sykes, and “Democracy in Chains” by Nancy MacLean.

An unflinching look at the rise of Trumpism and the effects on American democracy from former George W. Bush speech writer and GOP stalwart David Frum. Frum's prose is concise, incisive, and well-researched as evidenced by the mountain of references he provides. For liberals and never-Trumpers, chapters 10 "Resentments" and chapter 11 "Believers" offer the best explanation of the devotion Trump supporters demonstrate to a man Americans normally categorically reject: a whining, self-serving bragging, and narcissistic bully, lacking in every quality normally associated with any position of leadership.

Frum admonishes readers to reject impulsive tit-for-tat responses to Trumpism and instead adopt a higher sense of values and purpose. "As President Trump is cruel, vengeful, egotistic, ignorant, lazy avaricious, and treacherous, so we must be kind, forgiving, responsible, informed, hardworking, generous, and patriotic. As Trump's enablers are careless, cynical, shortsighted, morally obtuse, and rancorous, so Trump's opponents must be thoughtful, idealistic, wise, morally sensitive, and conciliatory. "They go low, we go high," a wise woman said."

Highly recommended for readers on both sides of the Trump question.

Narrated by James Anderson Foster and published by Harper Audio, Trumpocracy is a must read… or in this case must listen, for anyone who is truly interested in understanding what is happening in the western world.

Exceptionally well written, (and we would expect nothing less from Frum) this work is also based on a bedrock of knowledge and research, first hand experience in the modern day conservative movement.

Frum speaks from a place of undoubted conservative credentials. He speaks to both liberals and conservatives from all points on the spectrum.
Trumpocracy is at once a cold hard look at the truth and a fact-based horror story. It’s a True Crime novel that takes place even as the crime is underway.

Frum’s unrelenting reliance on fact-based evidence rather than hyperbole creates an even more terrifying view of the current climate.

Frum speaks to us as a friend. He speaks as a concerned citizen with an exceptional inside view. He speaks to both liberals and conservatives, and his words are unrelentingly compelling.

I don’t care what political flag you carry. I urge you, in fact I plead with you, to read or listen to this important book: Trumpocracy by David Frum.

David Frum's contributions to The Atlantic and his appearances on Bill Maher's show convinced me to read Trumpocracy and I am glad I did. If this book was just another compilation of Trump's lies and idiocies it would have been unnecessary; instead, Trumpocracy is a thoughtful and pained reaction to and examination of the damage that Trump and his followers have caused to our government, our foreign alliances, the notion of truth, and the rule of law, among other things.
Frum is a conservative in the best sense and although he is appalled by the actions of the GOP and right-wing media that helped set the stage for Trump's victory, Frum can envision a future where the conservative right learns from its mistakes and works on a corrective to create a reasonable conservative alternative (in this he is much more hopeful than I am). Obviously this book is preaching to the converted but Frum brings a seriousness to the table and a long view that places Trumpism in context. I emerged from this book a bit more hopeful and a bit wiser.
Highly Recommended

My opinion of David Frum changed after reading this book. I was very disappointed and believe that many of his opinions were formed prematurely.
Mr. Frum in my opinion is just another swamp creature that is unhappy that there is a movement to drain the swamp. Where he has resided way too long!

A very impressive book. Frum makes a powerful argument than Donald Trump is unfit for public office. Yes, there are many anti-Trump books avaialable but this one stands out. Trumpocracy is much more credible than, say, Rachel Maddow, because of the author's impeccable conservative credentials. I highly recommend it to conservative and liberals alike.

A cogent, pungent, and well documented indictment of Trump and his cronies and the cowards who support him. Unfortunately, he doesn’t speak to Pence. If Trump is impeached or imprisoned, we are left with Pence. What is his role?

Written by a thoughtful and intelligent conservative, this book really shows how our fractured and broken democracy got that way. As a longtime liberal, I'm sure that I wouldn't agree with all of Frum's politics, but he has given us a clear and accurate analysis of our current situation and offers hope for how we can fix it.

I appreciated the eloquent writing of Mr. Frum. His assertions are well sourced with loads of documentation. He speaks of the enlightenment and many conservative references. It is an even handed record. I recommend it as a read.

My grandson bought this book for me and i'm so glad he did. Thank you Jeremy!! Anyway, I loved the book, not what I expected from conservative author David Frum. A must read for all political stripes that love this country.

The way you know that a book is headed for greatness is that it tells us what we already know about ourselves, but does so in ways that none of us could have articulated without the help of a skilled scholar and academician. David Frum is that scholar and academician.

Although I do not always agree with his lack of emphasis (the finessing of them in fact) placed on the three things that most animate contemporary American politics — race, corruption and international interference into our political system (in that order) — I still believe this author has gotten it correct, for the right reasons, and thus has captured the essence of the American political system — perhaps more accurately than anyone else has done, so far, in American political history. And here I place in the line of fire Richard Hofstadter’s three most read books, as well as Alexi de Tocqueville’s mid-16th Century much cited observations.

Analyzing American politics from the vantage point of the “Trump buffoonery,” may at first glimpse appear to have made the author’s task infinitely easier, especially since the buffoonery itself (that is Trump’s negligence, mistakes, incompetence, short attention span, criminal tendencies, greed, incessant lying, fights with the press and with the FBI, lack of patriotism, collusion with Russia, basic lack of character, and desire to enrich himself at the nation’s expense) is a big part of the problem.

However, the author did not fall for that easy “head fake:” He sees the rot that has always been behind the walls, even before Trump was elected. For he knows as well as the rest of us do that Trump’s (and Bannon’s) instincts about the American political system have been unerring: Bannon knows that Trump is the zeitgeit of Americana, that his raison d’etre is carrying the flag and the totem of the “little racist white man,” arguably, the most important element in the American political cosmology.

Bannon and Trump know that it is racism against minorities, especially against black Americans, that animates the white American political mind in particular, and the American political system more generally. That is why Trump can proudly say that he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and none of his supporters would abandon him. It is also why he has 44 million Twitter followers, and why he got 63 million popular votes. (With that many votes in the tank, Trump is destined to win a second term. Who are we kidding here?)

Anyone who has instincts like that, and who has that many supporters even after he has proven that he is not up to the job, has been called a Moron by those in his own cabinet, nor has any interest in addressing the needs of the “little racist white men” who got him elected, cannot be a fluke of American politics. As much as I hate to admit it, there is political genius in that formula.

As the author points out, Trump has made an important gamble: that we hate each other much more than we love democracy. And so far that bet has paid off handsomely for him.

He has reneged on all of his promises to help the “little racist white man.” Instead, he has bounced back to “true form” to defend the interests of the billionaire class and the Republicans who are duty bound to do the same, but both of whom roundly rejected him ... at first? Now, begrudgingly they have normalized him and given him a pass. And by going mute, as Trump wrecks the Republic, so too have the ever-feckless Democrats. Whatever happened to the “loyal opposition?” If there is anything worse than a racist Republican, its a mute racist Democrat.

For his own purposes, Trump has embraced them back, while giving his base the middle finger, a lot of racist bombast and symbolism, but otherwise has abandoned them and their interests to their own devices.

He abandoned Puerto Rico as could have been expected since he is a racist. But unexpectedly, he has also abandoned the “little racist white men” of the hinterlands too, as they struggle with an unprecedented opioid crisis? How does Trump continue to get away with such negligence? Because his instincts tells him that so long as he is more concerned with Kaepernick’s knee, and with the fact that “Black lives don’t matter,” he can, and so far has, gotten away with everything:

American politics has been redefined, renormalized and dumbed-down to an all time new low — just where Bannon and Trump wanted it. It follows Brad Gilbert’s famous explanation of how he beat Boris Becker, much a much better tennis player than Gilbert: “I couldn’t beat him at his level, so I had to drag him down to my level.”

Trump did a similar thing when he said that he was going to “drain the swamp.” But he did not warn us that this was just a ruse so that he could drag us down to his level — a much deeper, darker and much more sinister swamp than any of us could have ever imagined.

The author did not miss these points, for he quickly asserts that Trump is a mere vehicle and symptom of a much larger American problem, of which racism, political corruption, and interference by foreign governments have been at the top of the list throughout American history. Trump, he correctly asserts, merely brings us to a new precipice, where what has always been roiling and bubbling about in the political undercurrents, has finally come to light and to an unceremonious head. In other words, Mr. Frum makes clear here that it is now “crunch time” in Reagan’s Potemkin Village — the so-called “shining city on a hill.”

What is the true nature of the problem? This author suggests that it is not Trump’s personality and lack of character per se, or his buffoonery alone, but the way he uses his power.

Trump is clearly a “political fraud,” as anyone with a brain, including especially those who voted for him, must by now know? But he is a skillful one, sly and dumb like a fox. The author asserts that by normalizing the Trump buffoonery and its excesses, we have fallen into his trap and enabled him to achieve what appears to be his, and his master’s, only real purpose: to permanently weaken our democratic institutions. So that he (and they) can then use his time in power to, at their leisure, sew chaos and then plunder the nation, enlarging his family’s wealth immensely, and paying off his nefarious financial and political debts in the process.

So far, Trump’s project is still on target towards his, his family’s, and his masters’ victory. Although the author tries to end on an optimistic note, I see nothing in the near-term that justifies such optimism. Ten stars! A truly well-thought out, and well-crafted book.

David Frum is the first conservative voice I always turn to when I want to understand the other political side of an issue. He's pragmatic and always can be depended up to put country over party. I enjoyed his insights tremendously in this book. It isn't a salacious gossipy novel; you can always depend on him to put facts first.

I bought the book at Barnes and noble. It's a good summary of what happened and what is happening to our country. David Frum is a great writer. I do think this book is good for anyone interested in political science. David Frum was the speechwriter for Bush. He knows how DC works and what it takes to be successful.

Since 2000, democracy has gone into retreat - Russia, South Africa, Turkey, Philippines, Venezuela, Hungary, and now the Trump administration in America. Frum's concern via the Trump administration does not involve a bold overthrow of the Constitution, but stealthy paralysis of governance, an accumulating subversion of norms, and incitement of private violence to radicalize supporters. Frum's book tells of those who enable Donald Trump. Political decisions and economic trends have divided the U.S. along lines of class, race, region, national origin, and cultural identity. Even the bonds between men and women have become attenuated.

Even before Trump became a presidential candidate, American politics had been veering toward extremism and instability. He was elected thanks in great part to voters disgusted by a status quo that was ceasing to work for more and more of them. The largest and most loyal subset were men who felt devalued in the economy and disrespected in the culture, who chafed at being scolded for the 'privilege' while succumbing to disability, drugs, and early death. He has not kept faith with those voters, but they have kept faith with them.

He has persuaded millions to ignore information they need as 'fake news' from a 'corrupt media,' allowed foreign states and local politicians to tamper with the integrity of American elections to his own benefit, demands high officials disregard the law in favor of personal loyalty to him, alienated allies, and goaded small ones to the edge of war, inflamed the ethnic and class divisions that empowered him, and enriched himself in government.

The slowdown in economic growth since 2000 and the shock of the Great Recession have also embittered politics. Ill feeling over the Supreme Court decision that elevated Bush II over Al Gore has never healed. Failures and mistakes of government policy from the 9/11 attacks, the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, never-ending Mideast conflict, weak recovery from the Great Recession, debt-ceiling fights, birthers, radicalization of the Supreme Court and appellate court seats, attempts to legislate without hearings/CBO scoring, have further reduced respect for government. Reagan's failure to solve the immigration problem - with Obama attempting amnesty in various forms (DACA, expanding the protected population to include their parents

Frum, however, is more than a little biased in favor of democracy. China's accomplishments over the last near half-century, on the other hand, provide strong reason to consider increased autocracy. I'm well-educated and generally well-informed - however, I consider myself unable to make good judgments on much/most proposed legislation - the days of having to address a relatively limited number of fairly simple issues are long gone. Meanwhile, it has become impossible or almost impossible to find unbiased news sources that cover issues in significant depth. Another example - Russia. Russia went down a U.S. prescribed path upon the breakup of the Soviet Union - that created chaos, a serious recession, and a substantial reduction in the expected life-spans of Russians (We're now undergoing our own reduction, though fortunately not as serious.) Enormous amounts of time are now wasted reading/listening to/discussing politics - meanwhile, the sense of heading in the wrong direction climbs, and the quality of our politicos is falling (more contentious, ideology-based).

The reviews of Frum's Trumpocracy are reflective of how divisive our politics are. As of today there are no reviews for both 4-star and 3-star reviews and only 4% for 2-stars. I have never seen this happen for an the store book review. For 5-stars there are 68% and for 1-star there is 28%. Since this book was just released a few days ago it is unlikely most people have read the book. All of the negative 1-star reviews consist mainly of only one or two line comments which probably indicates they have not read the book, but only made a pre-judged opinion. One of the 1-star comments was "not even one picture in this book." Does this book review examplify where this country is politically or what?

If I were to write a book about the Donald J Trump presidency and the campaign before it, it would read very much like David Frum’s TRUMPOCRACY. I found myself time and again nodding in recognition of my own thoughts and recollections, noting that I’d written similar warnings and complaints in essays featured on my own blog, to Twitter threads and other social media posts. And in conversations with numerous people, I presented many of the same concerns Frum discusses in this book. However, Frum has a much better grasp on the material. He has more and better resources so it was a delight to see some gaps filled in and information added.

The first chapter of this book discusses how Trump was able to seize the presidency. Titled, “Pre-existing Conditions”, it discusses some things that went wrong eventually allowing a person like Trump to sit in the Whitehouse. Barack Obama isn’t given any leniency here. His presidency was one in a long line of executive power grabbers, increasing the Imperial Presidency and Frum makes it clear that Trump is more a symptom of degradation than the start of one. However, if we can’t turn this around, the United States of America could become less of what the Founding Fathers envisioned,and more a country of future politicians and presidents demanding loyalty to themselves and his/her family and business dealings instead of good policy for all.

From Trump’s pathological lying to his insistence that any media that disagrees with him is “Fake News”, to the Conservative movement moving more to Trumpism instead of an actual conservative platform. To the Republican Party, once working against him during the 2016 campaign to suddenly supporting him, apologizing for him and shrugging shoulders at his bad behavior. To his appeasers who irritate the situation and to those who cross him, Trump snubs and crushes when they don’t play along. To his ability to destroy in a single tweet. To his nepotism, instituting Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump to positions of “advisor”. And to the entire goal of the Trump’s presidency: To enrich himself, his family and massage his own ego. The Donald J Trump presidency is a disaster, far from what America is supposed to be. TRUMPOCRACY is a must read for details on all these points.

As stated above, much of the information in this book wasn’t entirely new to me. If you paid attention to this topic since at least 2015, you’ll already know much of this. But as also stated above, Frum has better sources than myself and I suspect, most others on the outside looking in. The two biggest take-aways I got from this book are the following:

The first take away involves American allies and Russia. Trump has encouraged the break up of the European Union, doesn’t think much of NATO (never mentioning Article 5 during a speech to NATO suggesting no interest in supporting it should it be needed). He belittles leaders in many of those countries and is creating an atmosphere distancing America from the rest of the world. Closer to home, he showed no indication of caring for Puerto Rico after the hurricane and instead, somewhat blaming them for their hardship in a series of tweets. And let’s not forget he wants a great wall along the southern border due to his ignorance and bigotry about who’s coming over the border from Mexico. In summary, he’s shattering long lasted alliances. No one will want to play with the USA anymore if this keeps up. Except one person.

There’s one world leader he doesn’t do this too. Trump goes out of his way to flatter Vladamir Putin and appears to be compromised in some fashion by Russian agents. In other words, the American president, for the first time since the end of World War II, favors Russia over European countries and neighbors. He flatters Putin and belittles the leaders in Europe who are the front line, geographically, against Russia. Does this signal to Putin he may do a little more of whatever he pleases?

And while good relations with Russia would be a positive thing, it’s clear Russia/Putin isn’t interested in a give and take. He’s interested in dominance. But that might be why Trump likes him. There’s ample evidence Russian agents tampered in many elections in Europe and the 2016 of the USA. The cold war will continue while this behavior persists. There’s going to have to be better leadership on both sides before things change.

This leads to the second take away. With Trump praising Vladimir Putin and showing zero interest in Russia’s interference with the 2016 election, AND, with it all too clear Trump was assisted into the presidency by Russian agents (to what extent, we’re still not sure), what is the intelligence community and American military to think of him? What if they begin operations off the books; that is, without notifying the Whitehouse due to lack of trust to where his allegiances lie? What if they work around this president for what they perceive is the good of the country, keeping both an eye on outside dangers and a possible one sitting right in the Whitehouse? With a president who shrugs off bad news about Russia but creates bad relations with Europe, what do you think they’re going to do? The history books regarding these matters may be missing a lot of chapters on the Trump years due to lack of documentation and more black budgeting in order to avoid involving the Whitehouse.

The last chapter, simply titled HOPE, gives...well, hope. It presents several “gifts” that Trump has given us. One of which is that much of America is showing a dislike for bullying behaviors as they turn on Trump when he demonstrates this. Americans are also spending more time bettering themselves, putting energy into learning the history of this country if only for the sake of trying to preserve the better parts. And also directing energies into pro-active and random acts of kindness. In the end, it’s possible that without even trying, Trump will end up creating better people who inhabit these United States.

David Frum has done an amazing job alerting the American people to the threat of Trump and his challenge to our American institution and norms. Very well written and very wonderfully elucidated and explained. It was truly enlightening and inspiring to read this book and to receive a call to action to be a more involved and more dedicated American citizen to the best of our American democracy and the need of all its citizens to maintain that democracy. Thank you, so much, David Frum!

Very well written, but am tired of hearing why a bunch of people are upset and voted for a guy who is ill suited to be in the job. Basically it is because they actually have to go through what many in this country have lived with forever. Then even more insulting is what will happen if they are not dominant again though demographically that is not going to happen.

However if you want a fact-based account of our current Presidency and our country, this book is a must read.

A certain sort of conservative Republican can secure the status of widely admired public intellectual by never saying anything good about conservatives, Republicans, or their policies. David Frum is of this ilk, albeit an intelligent, articulate and occasionally insightful example. His latest book is major disappointment. If you read it, I advise beginning with the last three chapters, because these show just what sort of "conservative" Mr. Frum has become. His loathing of Donald Trump has unhinged him. Here is an example: "These are dark days for the United States, yet they are pierced by shafts of light. A new spirit of citizen responsibility is waking in the land. Americans are turning off cable networks that lie to them to consume instead more and better news." What does he mean by "more and better news"? The footnote to this assertion recites that the ratings of MSNBC have gone up, and those of Fox News down. If you believe that MSNBC is less partisan and more truthful than Fox, that Fox "lies" and MSNBC tells the "truth," then David Frum is your kind of conservative and you will enjoy this book. In fact, Fox and MSNBC are equally partisan, but Fox is far more diverse in its content, hosting far more liberals as contributors and guests than MSNBC does conservatives. When did you last see Rachel Maddow interview anyone who disagrees with her, even a teeny bit? The earlier chapters of this book just string together the headline stories of 2017, with Frum's analysis in about equal parts insightful and hysterical. If you read one book about Trump's first year, Michael Wolff's "Fire and Fury" is more fun.

This book mis full of “Horsehockey Pucks” - One of the most biased, #Fakenews books ever written. President Trump has placed his business assets into a trust. And by the way please provide the counterbalancing story on #HRC Hillarypo Rodham Clinton who sold out America with sale of Uranium and her $ 1 Billion #ClintonFountation. Much more to come
And here it is . .President Trump has made Americans more safe against foreign dangers including illegal border crossings, and has diverted our money from the likes of Iran and Hezbollah to better protect our nation and its Democratic Partner Nations. Not the #Horsehockey that Frum has projected. . Betcha can’t wait. Later

It's interesting to note that nearly all the positive reviews for this book come from left-leaning individuals who find Frum agreeable and consider reading his work to be a healthy exercise meant to "challenge their viewpoints." None seem to realize that their admiration of him really stems from the newly-established similarities among their ideologies as Frum is no conservative. Rather, he's a neoconservative statist in the mold Dick Cheney or any of the other Bush admin (of which he was a member) officials whom liberals rightly used to despise just 2 short years ago before their innate distaste of Trump miraculously made them redeemable to the left. If you're looking to further isolate yourself in an echo chamber and confirm your bias then this book is for you. If you want to actually challenge your beliefs and find out why thinking people were driven to vote for Donald Trump then read or listen to a real intellectual like Jordan Peterson, a classical liberal whose been branded as "alt-right" as a result of the last 2 years of ideological-shape shifting-insanity.

Once again David From engaging in loony conspiracies to attack people he disagrees with politically. Not taking anything away from his abilities as a writer, I actually think quite highly of him in that regard. David Frum is not a conservative and anyone who believes that is probably a progressive Democrat who, at this point, will praise anything that goes after Trump. I'm not a huge Trump fan myself, I think he's brash and bold but that's exactly what David and others like him do not understand: Americans didn't want another career politician, especially politicians from the likes of David Frum who claim the mantle of conservatism but failed to actually enact anything conservative during his time in Washington. Instead of supporting the conservative movement and its de facto leader, Trump, Mr. Frum relentlessly attacks him and engages in tin foil conspiracies. It's sad to see smart men like David engage in this type of character assassination against a man whose done nothing but try to return America to its first principles since taking office e.g. not having the intelligence community weaponized to sway an election. Instead, Mr. Frum continues to support the conspiratorial left and in the process has lost every dime of credibility he once well-deserved. The only corruption of the Republic occurred in your White House and the subsequent administration, Frum. Some conservative you are.

Just another anti- Trump dialogue, couldn't find evidence of an attack on democracy, with todays news, if anything it just exposes the lies of the left
The only positive aspect of this book is, its proves once again that Donald J Trump is correct when he said he would be the greatest jobs president that the world has ever known
Look at all the anti trump literature for sale, jobs in media, anti- trump apparel, so hating somebody is a good thing if you can make money in doing so, I thought that is what we were against Trump for, hating people

This is an amusing book. Why? Well, it is an amusing read because of the venomous screed by an intellectually dishonest, war monger. Keep in mind, the author was one of the "geniuses" of the Bush Administration. He gave us the term "axis of evil" which was the foundation of a foreign policy approach, which has lead to disastrous results. He was also one of the people who attacked those who question the genius of that modern-day Churchill, George W. Bush, as unpatriotic. Now he steps forth again, to warn that the American republic has been corrupted. What he does not admit is the extent to which much of what he cites as evidence of decline has at its roots in events that already occurred. It is fashionable to yell about Trump, but this misses the real cause of concern. The system is broke, and has been. Frum, however, neglects to include this admission. Why? Because he was part of it.

This book rehashes news accounts, with our political ills falling at the feet of Donald Trump. Trump has
been made possible not by Trump himself, but by a post-truth electorate who hunger for any kind of
authenticity, where the facts matter little. Trump exploited the galling stench of Hillary Clinton, who stupidly fashioned as “deplorables” those not being taken in by her record of deceits and hypocrisies no
less stunning than Trump’s world view of an arrested adolescent who dwells in a permanent sandbox.
Our voters are not enlightened by media, where entertainment tops all, and where bad boy behavior makes for “good television” where the cameras welcome and the viewers worship the antics of a Trump..
The author has presented a numbing and rambling account which demonizes Trump relentlessly while
providing some but scant consideration to the underpinnings which allow politicians of all stripes to
flourish..Trump’s device of one or two word labels disparaging any opponent or foe was ingenious, while
grossly dishonest, but the voters in the primaries and in the general election ate it up..So we voted for
the best entertainer..And now we are getting what we deserve..We saw that we deserved better than
Hillary, but who can state with any certainty that we will not again see an array of pant suits in 2020?
Like many, I just thought, and still do, that Trump is just in it for the ride. But why blame him for winning?

President Trump has lowered our taxes, eased our regulatory burden, decentralized military decision making, and defended the 2nd Amendment; dictators do none of these things. David Frum is suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome.

Crybaby mainstream media nonsense attacking the only president to call them out on their charades. Glad I paid absolutely nothing to read this utter piece of trash. Expect nothing less from "senior editor" DAVID at a mainstream media company.

Purchased this book elsewhere to see what all of the fuss is about. Well, apparently that “fuss” was for nothing and it’s now apparent. I wonder if this author would want to rewrite this book based upon what has now JUST been revealed about the democratic party and their abuse of power through federal levels of government law enforcement based upon now proven false information.

In all honesty, I did not read this book based on my personal knowledge of who writes for the Atlantic. I read very thing and try to pick writers who do not have a fixed track record. I noticed that one of the missing statements describing who Frum worked for at the White House is missing. I carried FBI credentials for 23 years. Contrary to public sentiments, the FBI is no longer an agency of hard corps conservatives. Having been retired for 20 years, it appears that a liberal faction has taken offer. Considering recent allegations my experience told as an investigator and throw in five years as a SAC pilot. I think I know as much about is unlawful and the level at which prosecution is warranted. Having the experience of investigating a case, and presenting the case to a United States Attorney,who in real life would be an Assistant (AUSA). I would have be positive that anyone who handles any classified information on a personal system violates the laws I as an Agent or Pilot would be indicted, tried and convicted. If Frum doesn't agree that is not an example of major corruption as anything I personally know, I would welcome a comment. One last comment. Lawyers and writers make terrible investigators. They are taught to tell the truth. Lawyers defend guilty people. Not making an argument against their right, but Agents and dectives always face the prospect of testifying under oath. Wirites live by the exageration and bending of the truth. Did any Presidential speech writer consider what helps their President, and what does not, and is that not at the heart of producing "spin". That is his job. Again, the Agent must seek the truth, and nothing but.

When it now appears that going beyond personal beliefs enters professional areana. That consitutes the Corruption of America.

For those who HAVE read this. Am I correct or not regarding what Frum decided whatcorruption is. This would be the first time anything or anyone has written a conservative view.