The Making of Donald Trump

Few journalists have covered Donald Trump's career with David Cay Johnston's investigative precision. A Pulitzer Prize winner at The New York Times for exposing loopholes in the American tax system, Johnston began investigating the businessman's dealings in 1988, while covering the casino industry in Atlantic City for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

What distinguishes The Making of Donald Trump is its rigorous commitment to primary sources. Rather than relying on political gossip or anonymous accounts, Johnston grounded the biography in thousands of pages of court records, New Jersey Casino Control Commission records, tax reports, sworn testimony, and dozens of interviews he personally conducted with his subject.

The result is a balanced, measured account, driven by the search for truth rather than partisanship, that examines the business mechanics of a central figure in contemporary politics. For readers accustomed to public debate, the book offers a practical demonstration of investigative journalism at its best, with every factual claim supported by certified public records, government audits, and official documents spanning generations.

The biography begins by examining the origins of the family fortune. Trump's paternal grandfather, Friedrich Trump, emigrated from Germany and built his initial savings during the Klondike Gold Rush, running rustic hotels and boardinghouses before returning to New York with capital for small real estate purchases.

The real leap in wealth came under his father, Fred Trump. A disciplined, methodical builder, Fred constructed thousands of middle-class apartments in Brooklyn and Queens. This expansion was supported by federal housing programs, with generous public subsidies to offset construction costs.

Donald grew up in this world of construction sites and political maneuvering, learning that government is a vital source of economic protection for those who know how to work behind the scenes. When Fred faced scrutiny from congressional committees for charging rents above legal limits, his young son witnessed how delaying tactics in court could deflect government pressure without undermining the family's wealth.

Donald Trump's professional persona was shaped by attorney Roy Cohn. A feared figure in New York and a former adviser to Senator Joseph McCarthy during the Cold War, Cohn taught the young businessman that the legal system should be wielded as a weapon in a never-ending battle.

Cohn's teachings boiled down to ruthless principles: always attack and never retreat, counterattack every challenge furiously, never apologize or admit mistakes, and loudly declare victory in the press regardless of the legal outcome. A lawsuit did not need a strong legal foundation; its practical purpose was to drain an opponent financially and control the public narrative.

Under Cohn's guidance, Trump faced his first major federal legal dispute in the seventies, when the Justice Department sued the family company for racial discrimination in rental housing. Instead of reaching a quiet settlement, Trump called in the press and filed a multimillion-dollar suit against the government. Although he ultimately signed a consent decree, he publicly proclaimed an unqualified victory.