Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading

Trump in new Michael Schmidt afterword: "What the f---?"

New York Times legal scoop machine Mike Schmidt has new nuggets from the Oval Office in a 12,000-word afterword for the paperback edition of his bestselling "Donald Trump v. The United States."

The big picture: After retired four-star Marine Gen. John Kelly became White House chief of staff in 2017, he found President Trump "had no grasp on the basics of American foreign policy," Schmidt writes.


  • "Why did we go to war in North Korea?" Trump would ask Kelly. "Why the f--- are we in NATO?"

"Trump seemed to have no interest in — and be confused by — Kelly's explanation that nations created a deterrence against Russia by committing to a collective defense," Schmidt continues in the new edition, out Tuesday.

  • "What the f---?" Trump said.

Kelly would tell aides:

"He has this thing that he knows more than the generals, the economists, the geologists. He is incapable of saying, 'I don't know anything; I need some advice.'"

Go deeper: Read Chapter 1 + listen to an audio sample (read by Mike Schmidt).

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.