NUCLEAR WAR FEARS OF
THE man who ghost-wrote the book that made Donald Trump a household name in America has told of his “guilt and deep regret at helping to create a monster”.
Tony Schwartz spent 18 months at the US Presidential candidate’s side in the midEighties while writing The Art Of The Deal.
The memoirs-cum-business advice book helped create the “Trump brand” by portraying the then New York big shot, then in his late 30s, as the ultimate tycoon – launching his fame far beyond the Big Apple.
Now Schwartz, who got to know Trump better than anyone outside the multi-millionaire’s family, is hoping the opinion polls are right and the Republican loses – for the sake of the world’s survival.
“To be honest the most worrying prospect for me is Trump having his hands on the nuclear codes,” says Schwartz. “He is extremely thick-skinned, very reactive and compulsive. He is always wanting to prove he is the most powerful person in the room.
“So you imagine him in some sort of confrontation with a person like Putin – and he turns to the guy next to him carrying the nuclear codes and says, ‘I’ll show him’.
“And that’s the end of the world as we know it. It’s not a joke to me. It’s very real. He does not have a sense of mental balance – and that is not a person you want anywhere near the nuclear codes.”
UNPLEASANT
Schwarz stuck close to Trump while co-writing the book with him. He was at his side in his office as he closed big deals. He flew with him on his helicopter and spent weekends at his Florida estate.
He admits he “sugar- coated” what he witnessed to show Trump in a good light – but the longer they spent together the more he began to see another, unpleasant, side of the man.
“At that time he wasn’t even one of the most successful real estate developers, much less a national figure. I softened his image and made Trump appear more appealing in The Art Of The Deal than he actually is,” says Schwartz, 64, a former staff writer at New York magazine.
“I put lipstick on a pig. I feel a deep sense of remorse that I contributed to presenting Trump in a way that brought him wider attention.
“In reality he is hateful. He is one-dimensional and he is a blow- hard. I really want people to understand that this is not a legitimate candidate for President. This is a deeply, deeply troubled, and troubling, human being.” But even Schwartz admits to being shocked by the “horrendous nature” of the sexual assault