After much anticipation surrounding the controversial release of the Mary L. Trump tell-all book, it is finally here. The book was the topic of many conversations well before it dropped. The Trump family tried to fight the book’s release in court, claiming that it violated a non-disclosure agreement that Mary L. previously entered into. However, a judge found in Mary L.’s favor, and here we are.
Mary L. Trump is the niece of President Donald Trump and the daughter of his deceased brother, Fred Trump, Jr. Her tell-all book, Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man, tells a clear and thorough story of how the Trump family came to be. The family history starts with the migration of Donald Trump’s paternal grandparents to America from Germany, a fact that President Trump has previously denied. His grandfather allegedly migrated to America to avoid being drafted into the German military. The couple gave life to Fred Trump Sr., who ran the Trump family like Suge Knight ran Death Row Records. Fred Sr. was definitely on some “you can either get down or lay down” type vibe — a trait that he later passed on to his children.
Fred Sr. married a poor immigrant woman name Mary (for whom Mary L. is named), and together they had five children: Maryanne, Fred Jr., Elizabeth, Donald, and Robert. Fred Sr. was described by the author as being emotionally distant, leaving most of the child rearing to be done by his wife. However, his wife was plagued with many health issues and often was in no condition to raise her children. Even when she was, Mary was just as emotionally inept as Fred Sr. With two parents who were uninterested in raising their children past providing the essentials, the Trump siblings grew up lacking the emotional support that all children need to become well-adjusted, emotionally healthy adults.
Fred Sr. can be credited with being a good provider to his children. He raised them in a big beautiful home and sent them to the finest schools. He was business savvy, building several real estate businesses and projects from the ground up without incurring any debt. He did this through shady business practices, such as scamming the government out of grants, not paying employees accordingly, and being an overall slumlord to his tenants.
Although Fred Sr. wanted to groom his oldest son and namesake to be his successor, he did not believe Fred Jr. had the killer instinct to do so. The author describes in great detail the many ways that Fred Sr. showed his disappointment in his oldest son, who didn’t necessarily want to take over the family business. Fred Jr. was more interested in other pursuits, such as being a pilot, fishing, and having fun with friends. The complete opposite of his father, Fred Jr. was more interested in traveling and enjoying life than money. Even from a very young age, Donald sensed this as an opportunity to push Fred Jr. out of the way and take his place as his father’s right-hand man. He did all that he could to pull his father’s attention away from Fred Jr. and onto him. Donald often acted out, bullied his siblings and created an arrogant persona to gain his father’s attention, all to Fred Sr.’s delight.
Fred Sr. Hunger Games’ed his children against each other, in both childhood and adulthood. His children often competed against and sabotaged each other. They lived their lives in a way that their father thought was appropriate for them. The Trump children played the game because they knew if they didn’t, they would risk being cut out of the family business and all of the perks that came along with it. As long as Fred Sr.’s children were obedient and let him run their lives, they would have access to money, the family’s health insurance plan, and free rent if they lived in one of his rental properties. Anyone who chose not to play the game was met with retaliation. Fred Sr. had a long reach throughout Brooklyn and Queens, New York. His children could not rent an apartment, buy a home, apply for a loan, or work anywhere without word getting back to Fred Sr., and if he did not approve, it would not happen. Welcome to Death Row.
Mary L. has been accused by many Trump supporters of writing this book for attention. Mary L. does not need to seek attention. She is an accomplished woman in her own right, completing school (despite her grandfather’s many objections to this) and earning a PhD in clinical psychology. Others say that she wrote the book for revenge against her family. Whether or not this is true, after reading this book, I believe she is absolutely entitled to do so. Mary L. and her brother (Fred III) were treated like black sheep (just as their father was), disinherited twice (from both of their grandparents’ wills), and did not receive any of the money that their deceased father earned while working for the family business. When Fred III and Mary L. contested Fred Sr.’s will and later sued the Trump family, Fred III’s young special-needs son was cut off from the family’s health insurance as an act of retaliation — and this act was approved by the Trump siblings, including Donald.
Linda Trump (mother of Mary L. and Fred III) was continuously disrespected by the entire Trump family. Linda came from humble beginnings, much like her mother-in-law, Mary. However, as the author put it, once Mary climbed the ladder (of success), she made sure to pull it up after her rather than helping Linda to do the same. In short, Mary married rich, forgot where she came from and became a professional hater. So yes, Mary L. has plenty of reasons to seek revenge.
The author has a very unique perspective, which has everything to do with why this book is so magnificent. She has firsthand knowledge of what went on within the Trump family because she was often present for a lot of the events in the book. In addition, her training as a clinical psychologist gives her the insight to recognize the many mental health issues floating around the Trump family. Mary L. gives her professional opinion on what mental health issues she believes that her uncle is suffering from, while also making it clear that this is strictly from observation, as she has never formally assessed Donald and she does not believe that he would ever consent to sitting for a formal assessment.
Mary L. does a fantastic job of painting a vivid picture of Donald Trump that explains so well what we are witnessing of him today. However, she does not bash him — because she doesn’t need to. She doesn’t need to call him an incompetent businessman or an incompetent president — he does a great job of showing the world that himself. Mary L. actually does quite the opposite. She does an excellent job of showing the audience how the scars of childhood linger with us long after childhood is over. She shows us the fragile, insecure child that Donald once was, acting out just to get his father’s love and attention. His parents created a man who doesn’t know consequences, hard work, struggle, humility, empathy, or kindness. For a moment, the reader may empathize and even sympathize with Donald Trump.
Dr. Mary L. Trump is a talented writer. Over a million people agree, as she sold well over a million copies of her book during its first week of release. I sincerely hope that this book brings her peace and closure, as well as millions of dollars in f**k you money to replace what the Trump family previously cheated her out of.
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