Gaslighting America, by Amanda Carpenter

Amanda Carpenter has put in plenty of time to be a bona fide conservative Republican activist, writing and working on campaigns to advance conservatism in the U.S.  During the 2016 presidential election, she became a bona fide Never Trumper.  In Gaslighting America: Why We Love It When Trump Lies to Us, she writes about Trump's lies, narcissism, and tactics.  She does not approve.

Gaslighting America was published May 1 of this year.  Assuming her text went to the publisher a few months before publication date, she had to have been wrapping this up in late 2017.  So the book deals with the campaign and the first months of his presidency.  Anyone will acknowledge that his administration got off to a rough start in some ways.  But, at the time of this writing, it seems like the Never Trumpers have been proven wrong--so far. 

Economic success, foreign policy success, good approval ratings, judge appointments, and more point to promises kept and the right direction for the administration and the country.  Where are the Never Trumpers now?  Do they really think the U.S. would be better off right now with she who shall not be named back in the White House?  Perish the thought.  In fact, I never understood the Never Trumpers.  Sure, Trump is, they said, crude, sexist, a bully, unethical, offensive, etc., etc.  But he had one thing going for him that we could all agree on: he was, after the primaries, the only hope from preventing that Democrat from taking the presidency!  No way.  For all his faults, Trump was the only choice for anyone with a drop of Republican, conservative blood in her body. 

Yet Carpenter focuses on Trump's faults and prevarications.  She talks about his lies, but I think most of his "lies" can be explained by his swagger and style.  Sure, this may not be the greatest [insert anything here] in the history of mankind, but for Trump, that's just his was of saying he likes it.  As Carpenter points out, Trump's Art of the Deal ghost writer coined the phrase "truthful hyperbole" to describe this Trump trait.  That sums it up.

Do I wish Trump would keep his mouth shut from time to time and not play fast and loose with the truth?  Yes, of course.  But I also wish people like Amanda Carpenter would take a moment to acknowledge that America is better off with Trump at the helm than with that other unethical, foul-mouthed, offensive, sexist candidate that he ran against.



Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!