Summary

The chapter begins with a description of Henry Chirinos, known also as the Constitutional Sot and the Walking Turd. Fat, messy, alcoholic, and with a face ravaged by both a car crash and plastic surgery, Trujillo has an intense personal dislike for him. Yet, Trujillo thinks, he has chosen Chirinos to be one of his closest collaborators, authoring the constitution and designing a large part of the “legal web” of Trujillo’s regime (113). Trujillo marvels at Chirinos’ ability to work so hard and well despite his heavy drinking.

Chirinos gives Trujillo a report on Trujillo’s personal businesses, constituting most of the industry in the country. They are all suffering due to the economic sanctions. We learn that Trujillo has attempted to stave off the effect of the sanctions by refusing to lay off a single worker, which has caused his businesses to hemorrhage...