Nixon Was A Piker -- Digby

[erronis]

https://digbysblog.net/2026/06/19/nixon-was-a-piker/

Many excerpts from the new Haberman/Swan book. (I'm not going to pay to read it.)

. . .

I wrote about Trump and his "presidential historian" (Gary Player's caddy) who said he wa more powerful than any conqueror/monster in human history earlier. Here's more from the new Haberman Swann book:

Trump told an Israel skeptic in the early months of his administration that he didn't want "any part" of a Netanyahu war with Iran.

Trump told another adviser that Netanyahu was a "con man," according to the authors, who say that it is one of the worst insults in Trump's lexicon.

Lol. Just because it's pure projection doesn't mean it isn't also true.

He talks like the gangster he is behind closed doors:

"I want to bust his fucking balls, honestly," Trump said of [Jerome] Powell during a July staff meeting, according to the book. "What about that fucking building? Can we stop it? Can we stop construction. I just want to bust his fucking balls. Fuck him."

Trump asked if they could stop construction. "I'll look into it," Vought said.

"No don't look into it," Trump replied. "Bring me a plan."

"You used to be a killer, Howard," Trump said,[to Howard Lutnick] according to the authors. "I remember when you were thirty-five, you were a killer. And now you've got your beautiful wife, and your big house, and you're just soft. And you're a pussy. You know what you are? You're a pussy."

"I remember there was this lawyer who was in the administration who said the election was fair and there's no fraud. Who was he?" Trump asked.

"Oh the DHS -- I think you're talking about the DHS guy," Miller replied. "I forget his name."

Epshteyn then googled Krebs' name. "Yeah, Chris Krebs," Trump said, according to the book. "Whatever happened to him? He was a bad one. Take a look at him."

The DOJ dutifully opened an investigation.

Jesus. Witkoff memorialized the attempted sell-out of Ukraine:

Witkoff sought a breakthrough with Putin based on personal chemistry, the authors write, adding that Putin "seemed to play into this" while giving up nothing on the battlefield.

Haberman and Swan write that during a meeting last year at the Kremlin, Putin was doodling on his personal stationary. Witkoff asked what it was and Putin held up the paper, which said "3+2," which was shorthand for the territorial framework that Witkoff had discussed with him to stop the fighting.

"Can you sign that for me and can I take it home?" Witkoff asked, according to the book.

Putin signed the drawing, and Witkoff had it framed in black with a taupe mat, Haberman and Swan write.

These vacant amateurs... god help us.

What piece of work.