Jonathan Karl - Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show

An imprint of Penguin Random House LLC

penguinrandomhouse.com

Copyright 2021 by Jonathan Karl

Penguin supports copyright. Copyright fuels creativity, encourages diverse voices, promotes free speech, and creates a vibrant culture. Thank you for buying an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright laws by not reproducing, scanning, or distributing any part of it in any form without permission. You are supporting writers and allowing Penguin to continue to publish books for every reader.

DUTTON and the D colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC.

library of congress cataloging-in-publication data

has been applied for.

ISBN 9780593186329 (hardcover)

ISBN 9780593186343 (ebook)

Cover design by Jason Booher

Cover photo by Bill Clark/Getty Images

Book design by Nancy Resnick, adapted for ebook by Kelly Brennan

While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers, internet addresses, and other contact information at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors or for changes that occur after publication. Further, the publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

pid_prh_5.8.0_c0_r1

For my mom, the kindest person on the planet

Karl: Were you worried about him during that siege? Were you worried about his safety?

Trump: No. I thought he was well protected. I had heard he was in good shape. No. Because I had heard he was in very good shape.

Karl: Because you heard those chants. That was terrible. I mean, you know, those

Trump: Well, the people were very angry.

Karl: They were saying, Hang Mike Pence!

Trump: Because its common sense...

The interview, I was told, would happen right there in the middle of the lobby, a room with two enormous crystal chandeliers hanging from a towering gold ceiling, the ornate and glittering space that once served as the living room for Marjorie Merriweather Post, the heiress who built the place. Before long, Donald Trump arrived, wearing a suit and tie. He ordered a Diet Coke and got right down to business, not waiting for my questions.

You know we are putting out releases, he said. These releases are much more elegant than Twitter. We are really getting the word out.

The former leader of the free worldwho had been banned by Twitter and every other major social media platform for spreading disinformationhad discovered a more effective way of communicating: the press release.

As the interview went on, members of Trumps Mar-a-Lago club began to arrive for drinks and dinner on the patio outside, each one of them passing right by us, each one of them seeing him being interviewed. He could have talked to me in a private area of the club, but why would he do that? He wanted everybody to see him being interviewedout of office, but still the center of attention.

Over the next ninety minutes, I asked him about some of the darkest moments in the history of American democracy, when, for the first time, an American president refused to concede defeat, attempted to overturn an election, and inspired his most die-hard supporters to stop the peaceful transfer of power. As you will see later in this book, his words were chilling, but his demeanor cheerful. In his gilded exile, he feels abused and betrayed, convinced the darkest betrayals came from those closest to him.

But in our conversation, as Donald Trump lashes out at enemies real and perceived, he seems happy, joyfuljoyfully aggrieved. Hes plotting a new campaign, not necessarily a political comebackthats far-fetched although not impossiblebut a campaign to make his erstwhile friends and allies pay a price for their betrayal. All the talk of disloyalty and revenge made him so gleeful he asked me to stick around for dinner.

As I headed to the dining area outside, Trump went elsewhere. Another meeting, he told me.

The main patio of Mar-a-Lago overlooks the clubs pool and, beyond that, the lagoon that separates Palm Beach from the Florida mainland. Its a beautiful space, half enclosed by the curved colonnade that extends from the part of the club where Trump has his residence to the areas open to club members. As the sun went down, the tables began to fill with diners, a mostly older and enormously wealthy crowd. On this night, there were about a hundred people spread out over a few dozen tables.

Shortly after I began eating, I heard a few people begin clapping. The clapping, isolated at first, soon spread across the patio, turning into sustained applause. As everyone soon noticed, Donald Trump was making his way from his residence. The diners were then on their feet, giving a standing ovation for the former president as he slowly walked down the Mar-a-Lago colonnadea structure reminiscent of the line of pillars outside the Oval Office and alongside the Rose Garden. The ovation continued until he got to the archway leading to the living room where I had interviewed him. He pointed to a few of the guests. He waved and pumped his fist and then made his way to a table just like the others, although this table had a small velvet rope around it.

The applause continued until Trump took his seat. As the guests returned to their dinners, I asked one of the members how often this happens. How often does the former president stroll along the colonnade on his way to dinner as the members of his club rise to their feet in rapturous applause?

Every night, he told me.

Every night.