The author of an anonymous column in the New York Times in 2018, who was identified as a senior Trump administration official acting as part of the “resistance” inside the government, has written a tell-all book to be published next month.
The book, titled, “A WARNING,” is being promoted as “an unprecedented behind-the-scenes portrait of the Trump presidency” that expands upon the Times column, which ricocheted around the world and stoked the president’s rage because of its devastating portrayal of Trump in office.
The column described Trump’s leadership style as “impetuous, adversarial, petty and ineffective,” and noted that “his impulsiveness results in half-baked, ill-informed and occasionally reckless decisions that have to be walked back.”
There is no modern historical parallel for a firsthand account of a sitting president written in book form by an anonymous author. Many senior government officials, including some who served in the Trump administration, have written books under their own names. Many more have shared information with journalists on the condition of anonymity, perhaps most famously the official known as Deep Throat who was a key source for Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein’s reporting in The Post on the Watergate scandal.
The 1996 publication of “Primary Colors: A Novel of Politics” caused a sensation in part because of the anonymity of its author, who was later revealed to be columnist Joe Klein. The book was a work of fiction, although its characters and events mirrored Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign.
The anonymous author of “A WARNING” did not take an advance and intends to donate some of the royalties to nonprofit organizations that focus on government accountability and supporting truth-tellers in repressive countries, including the White House Correspondents’ Association, Latimer said.
“The author could have received a seven-figure advance for writing this book,” Latimer said. “But ‘A WARNING’ was not written for financial reasons. The author sees this as an act of conscience and of duty, which is why the author refused any advance and is donating a substantial portion of any royalties to charities that protect those seeking the truth around the world.”
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