On the prospects of a Jared Kushner book deal: “I don’t think he has a lot of credibility with the MAGA audience, which is where you need these books to sell like hot cakes and then trying to publish it as liberal torture porn is not going to work either.” https://t.co/RD7RfUlngN
— Carlos Lozada (@CarlosLozadaWP) April 19, 2021
But sometimes profiting from those ‘books’ might be more difficult than expected. As I was taught, the Biblical quote in the title warned against scam artists and false prophets attempting to lure the faithful into error, which certainly seems appropriate in this instance. Of course most political books, especially on the ‘Right’, are made not to be read but to be sold, either as the visible sign of the buyer’s piety, or in bulk for laundering campaign contributions.
But the value to their ‘authors’ is, quite often, being able to claim the clout of having Made A Deal, of having something worth selling that publishers find worth buying. Even if all they’ve actually got to sell is a photo on the dust jacket, and maybe some memorable quotes. (Was it Dennis Rodman, back in the 1980s, who briefly became notorious for complaining about his ‘autobiography’ in terms that made it clear he not only hadn’t written it, he hadn’t even gone to the trouble of reading it?)
Behold, the tragic downgrading in the worth of TFG on the ever-blessed Marketplace:
While some veterans of Donald Trump’s administration are having a tough time selling memoirs about their time in power, others with ties to Trump who didn’t embrace his election conspiracy theories have sold book deals…
“It would be hard to imagine anyone on the inside offering us any wisdom, insight or even good storytelling that would educate, enrich or even entertain us at this point,” said D.C. literary agent Gail Ross. “Books are selling quite well today because they offer us those elements. I presume a couple may convince a publisher otherwise. For me, tall tales by Trump acolytes don’t cut it.”…
“I think [publishers] try to draw a line between those who are operating in reality or got off the train before it crashed and those who are living in Trump-world in an alternative reality, and for New York book publishing, which is a super woke environment for things like that. It’s going to be tough to publish a lot of Trump administration officials,” said one publishing insider.
(N.B.:‘Super woke’ = adverse to expensive social blowback not mitigated by earned-media value)
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and former White House adviser, is also expected to write a book, but when one major publisher was asked by POLITICO if they would try to secure the publishing rights to it, the person wasn’t interested…
One publishing industry source noted that Pence’s book may not do nearly as well as he hopes…
The person said that conservative readers are not eager to read behind-the-scenes looks at politics these days since they are locked out of power and are more interested in red-meat books attacking the left and President Joe Biden.
“There will only be a few more big books from the administration that succeed,” said the person. “I think Trump is fading much quicker from the national consciousness than people were banking on.”…
Enhanced Voting Techniques
So the Trump admin will be like GW Bush admin, it never happened for the Right – in their minds Obama was president until 2018 and Biden 2018 tell now.
HumboldtBlue
Here’s a dog reacting to a viral video of a dog saving his dog buddy from a pool.
The virtue of the link I provided is that is has nothing to do with Bill Barr.
mrmoshpotato
@Enhanced Voting Techniques:
The Bush Belly Sneetches
Audio
Redshift
@Enhanced Voting Techniques:
It was infuriating with Shrub, but I dunno, somehow the prospect of TFG and his ilk impotently fading from public consciousness is a lot more appealing. If I never have to think about him except in the past tense (which allows for Dems to still tie him around the necks of complicit Republicans), I’d be happy with that.
Platonicspoof
@HumboldtBlue:
Thanks.
Kate Bush, 1985.
mrmoshpotato
@Redshift: I don’t think EVT is mad that Dump isn’t on our faces every damned day anymore. I think it’s anger at Dump’s criminal, bastard administration being whitewashed.
Gretchen
Derek Chauvin was willing to plead guilty to one count of third degree murder days after George Floyd’s death, which would have resulted in a ten year sentence, in exchange for going to a federal rather than state prison and not being prosecuted on federal civil rights charges. Bill Barr rejected the plea. Did he want the protests to continue during the summer and fall of an election year, with conservative media portraying the protestes as riots, murders, and cities burning? I think he is cynical enough to nix the plea agreement to keep people protesting for Donald Trump’s electoral advantage. Evil, but plausible.
JaySinWA
We could use a post vaccine side effect (or lack) chain of posts. Sick stickers would be a bonus. ?????
A kind of a public v-safe.
Balconesfault
@Gretchen: interesting. .. I was wondering how the GOP managed to get a situation that was perfect for inflaming the culture wars over the summer.
My first thought was that Chauvin was part of a plot, doing something so obviously evil … but that was too over the top to voice out loud.
Barr making sure the issue became an inferno by turning down the plea deal? Totally plausible.
I still believe, well intentioned as it was, the term “defund the police” probably cost the Dems a dozen House seats.
Gretchen
@Balconesfault: Yes, and that was just a few fringe people saying that. Conservatives whipped that up as if that was the entire Democratic Party demanding that we defund the police, which it never was. They are still saying that’s Joe Biden’s policy, which is ridiculous.
Shalimar
Pretty sure it was Charles Barkley who said he had been misquoted in his own autobiography.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
@Gretchen: I think you are overthinking these boneheads; it was evil, that’s all Barr cared about.
Rusty
I am wondering what Amy Coney Barrett could possibly write about. She hasn’t done any thing yet. Is going to write about being a supermom? With her and her husband having full time jobs, someone else is doing a hell of a lot of the heavy lifting raising the kids (we had 4 and one of us worked remote part time and it was and is tough to manage). About her very unusual Catholicism? I don’t see that as a big winner with the right wing evangelical crowd. I also don’t remember any folksy Hillbilly Elegy vibe. I am guessing this is a straight up payoff. A big nonrefundable advance and the books remaindered in a matter of months.
WereBear
That is how I see these conservative bulk-buys. I also suspect some people get them to write the book that NOT a tell-all… but perhaps TFG ruined that, too. He used his out-loud voice all the time.
debbie
Well, publishing has certainly got its head up its ass. Publishing these quicky tell-all books that are more instant remainders than anything else does not speak highly of what the industry has become.
WereBear
Like everything else Republicans touch, it has been slowly devolving. Fifteen years ago, when I was trying to get someone to even look at my cat book, I discovered the slush pile had vanished, and agents had only two questions, “Are you a celebrity? Have you slept with a celebrity?”
Even if one lucks into some sort of IN, there’s rampant copyright theft and, as our own Frankensteinbeck discovered, outright financial theft.
Which is why I self-published.