The first time he said it – or rather tweeted it – was in January 2018. In describing his business, television, and political accomplishments, President Trump typed: “I think that would qualify as not smart, but genius… and a very stable genius at that!” He said it again at a NATO meeting that July. Again the following July 2019. And again in September. And October.
It’s become one of this era’s defining lines of bravado and self-image that infuriates Trump detractors and fuels his supporters with equal amounts of pleasure. Now, it’s also the title of one of this era’s defining books – an exploration of Trump’s first three years, with deep context and new extraordinary reporting.
Washington Post reporters Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig have built on the work they do every day – and, if you watch cable news, it seems every night – to deliver the No. 1 New York Times Best Seller “A Very Stable Genius – Donald J. Trump’s Testing of America.”
When they’re not writing best sellers, appearing on television or breaking news, Leonnig and Rucker are also earning Pulitzer Prizes, five of them individually and as part of teams. They brought that focus and detail to their book, an overwhelming series of events and back stories that delivers a powerful narrative that defines our times.
For show notes & my newsletter, go to chrisriback.com.
John Della Volpe, Harvard Institute of Politics
Susan Demas, Inside Michigan Politics
Wayne Slater, Dallas Morning News
Kay Henderson, Radio Iowa
Adam Smith, Tampa Bay Times
Elizabeth Wilner, Kantar Media Ad Intelligence
John Maginnis, LAPolitics.com
Geoff Garin, Democratic pollster at Hart Research
Rob Christensen, Raleigh News and Observer
Skip Rutherford, Clinton School of Public Service
Anna Greenberg, Democratic pollster of the year 2013
Lynn Bartels, Denver Post
James Pindell, WMUR
Nicholas Burns, Harvard Kennedy School
Sam Youngman, Lexington Herald Leader
Jim Galloway, Atlanta Journal Constitution
Robert Costa, Washington Post reporter
Nicco Mele, Echo Ditto and Harvard Kennedy School
Robert Shrum, Democratic strategist and NYU Wagner School
Neil Newhouse, Public Opinion Strategies
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