Katie Roche's Blog

Book Review-"Liberal Privilege" by Donald Trump Jr.

What intrigued me about this book is that it is self-published. As someone who self-publishes, I was interested to see how the book would be received. As a socialist and radical feminist, I don’t agree with a lot of what Trump Jr. says. And a point-by-point refutation would be a book in itself. Anyhow, I will judge the book on how it works as a conservative book.

The main argument he makes is that Biden family are corrupt. Hunter Biden (who Trump Jr. seems to be obsessed with), but also Frank Biden, Biden’s brother who pocketed money from charter school. Frank Biden got sued for his role in car accident that killed a man. He has never paid them the compensation he owes the man's family. Like Hunter, on paper Frank has no money, but still lives a lavish lifestyle. These examples are certainly problematic. Where is this money coming from? And they don’t reflect well on the Biden family. As well, the book also attacks Biden’s capability to be president. Trump Jr. argues that Biden would be a puppet leader, while more radical members of the party would actually be in charge. Trump Jr. also criticises Biden’s flip-flopping, history of dishonesty and plagiarism. Naturally, Trump Jr. also trumpets his father’s achievements in office.

The strongest point of the book is that it is well-researched. The book looks at the whole of Biden’s political career and drags many skeletons out of the Biden family closet. As well, Trump Jr. makes some solid points Biden’s failings as a candidate. Biden’s dishonesty goes beyond regular politician dishonesty (which is usually a case of over-promising). Furthermore, Biden has held some abhorrent policy positions over the years, especially on race. And the way he conducts himself around women and girls is unsettling.

However, the main argument of the book is flawed. Realistically, you can’t expect Trump Jr. to give an impartial account of how he has benefited from the Trump administration. It’s no surprise that he thinks his father is doing a great job as president. But he makes a false equivalency with the Bidens and his own family’s corruption. The difference between the Trumps and the Bidens is that Donald Trump benefits from what the Trump kids do. The Trump family is the Trump business. The two are inseparable. On the other hand, in the Biden family- like most families- everyone is responsible for themselves. Trump Jr. works for Trump Sr. But Hunter doesn’t work for Joe Biden. Joe Biden doesn’t benefit from what Hunter does. If Hunter Biden became immensely wealthy, Joe Biden wouldn’t get any of his money. But if Trump Jr. helped the Trump company become even wealthier than it already is, Donald Trump would get much of the profits. Furthermore, the Biden’s corruption doesn’t absolve the Trumps of any wrongdoing. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

Trump Jr. also overstates the case. For example, he says that Biden is the main reason for China’s prosperity. Really? Biden can’t have influenced foreign policy that much. Many people in many countries have contributed to China’s economic success. And is it right to imply that Biden is a bad person because of his family? Several members of the Biden family have acted badly over the years. But is any of that Joe Biden’s fault? Surely Trump Jr. must know better than anyone that we don’t choose our family. And it’s not Joe Biden’s job to keep his family in line.

As well, some bits are repeated from his first book, Triggered. A passage about Easter worshippers and a passage about trans-identified males in women’s sport are very similar to those in Triggered. Also, the writing style is repetitive in parts. Other bits are unclear. There were also a few formatting issues and typographical errors. For instance, the contents page of the ebook is at the end of the book when it should be at the start. The book would have benefited from more editing.

Overall, the book isn’t bad. It’s not amazing either. The book makes some fair points. And for a celebrity book, it’s quite good. Trump Jr’s voice comes through as you read it. It’s not too dry either. Many of these celebrity books are virtually unreadable, even though they have been written by a ghost writer. Others look like the celebrity who supposedly wrote it had virtually no involvement. Contrast Trump Jr’s books with Ivanka Trump’s books, which look like they could have been written by anyone. But it still has some big issues. Nonetheless this book does do is show that not all self-published books are total junk. Although it’s not perfect, the quality is not far off that of a traditionally published book.

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