TRUMP

WHO MADE TRUMP 103
is hilarious. But the last laugh is always had by Donald Trump. People
seem to believe that by making Trump look ridiculous, they can somehow
hope to undo him. But the opposite is true: they only make him
stronger, and they fail to make it clear that he is far more frightening
than comical.
u u u u
The press have therefore consistently served as Trump’s
reliable stenographers, helping him get what he wants. The New York
Times, which was regularly profiling Trump by the time he was in
his mid-30s, early on ran an article on Trump suggesting that he had
already negotiated a deal that he had not; once it was in the paper, it
was on its way to being true. 375 By reporting everything that comes
out of Trump’s mouth, the press helps Trump create the world as he
wishes it to be. Trump says “I make people believe in the American
dream again.” Then the New York Times dutifully writes “he makes
people believe in the American dream again.” 376
We know Trump knows how beneficial the press is to him, because
he has said it. Deborah Friedell says that during the 1980s, Trump
“was realizing that his life could be an advertisement for his work.” 377
As Trump described it:
It’s really quite simple. If I were to take a full-page ad in
the New York Times to publicize a project, it might cost
$40,000…but if the New York Times writes even a moderately
positive one-column story about one of my deals, it
doesn’t cost me anything. 378
Thus Trump is perfectly happy to confess that he uses the press carefully
and strategically to cultivate his image. As Trump says, “the point
is that if you are a little different, or a little outrageous, or if you