Can a 20-year-old character study still be relevant? In the case of this essay by New Yorker writer Mark Singer, which one British newspaper said offered “clearer insight into the mind” of Donald Trump than the longer biographies, my answer is yes. After spending several months with Trump, Singer noted how a favorite Trump phrase – “truthful hyperbole” – is more than just an oxymoron, it’s also a way to describe his assets, his statements, and even his home. In Trump’s 53-room apartment with its carved ivory frieze and onyx columns, there is a Renoir, or rather, a prominently placed reproduction.
Mark Singer, Trump & Me (UK: Penguin Random House UK, 2016), 97.