Summary

In the Introduction, the author, David Cay Johnston, explains his own background and how he came to meet Donald Trump for the first time. Johnston describes himself as a “rogue” in the newsroom but that his superiors allowed him that freedom because he was an asset to the newspapers where he worked. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his work on exposing tax loopholes. He became interested in casinos, applied for a job at The Philadelphia Inquirer and moved to Atlantic City where he soon met Trump, all about 30 years before Johnston wrote this book. Johnston said his first impression of Trump was that he was a “modern-day P.T. Barnum.” Johnston watched as Trump ran multiple campaigns for president, making a profit for himself along the way by using his private jet and centering campaign stops around paid speaking engagements.

Johnston...