Enough

The celebrated White House aide recalls Donald Trump's desperate attempt to cling to power in this dramatic debut memoir. Hutchinson, a former special assistant to President Trump and his chief of staff Mark Meadows, recaps her explosive testimony before the House Select Committee on the January 6 U.S. Capitol attack, alleging that Trump threw his lunch at the wall when Attorney General William Barr concluded that there was no voter fraud; discussed the idea of invoking the Insurrection Act to overturn the election results; plotted with his aides and lawyers to have the crowd at his January 6 rally move to the Capitol; demanded that armed supporters be allowed into the rally; and when Secret Service agent Bobby Engel refused to drive him to the Capitol after the rally, grabbed the limo steering wheel and lunged for Engel's throat. Also prominent in her narrative are Meadows, who fed Trump's delusions and helped organize Trump's schemes while burning sensitive documents in his fireplace; and Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani, whom Hutchinson accuses of fondling her during the rally. Lurking in the background is Hutchinson's testy relationship with her father, depicted as an eccentric Trump supporter who gifted her with deer organs to bolster her warrior spirit. This is a colorful and disturbing account of the unhinged narcissism and chaos of Trump's presidency. (Sept.)

An insider's account of the rampant misconduct within the Trump administration, including the tumult surrounding the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021. Hutchinson, who served as an assistant to Mark Meadows, Trump's former White House chief of staff, gained national prominence when she testified to the House Select Committee, providing possibly the most damaging portrait of Trump's erratic behavior to date. In her hotly anticipated memoir, the author traces the challenges and triumphs of her upbringing in New Jersey and the work (including a stint as an intern with Sen. Ted Cruz) that led her to coveted White House internships and eventual positions in the Office of Legislative Affairs and with Meadows. While the book offers few big reveals beyond her testimony (many details leaked before publication), her behind-the-scenes account of the chaotic Trump administration is intermittently insightful. Her initial portrait of Trump is less critical than those written by other former staffers, as the author gauges how his actions were seemingly stirred more by vanity and fear of appearing weak, rather than pure malevolency. For example, she recalls how he attended an event without a mask because he didn't want to smear his face bronzer. Hutchinson also provides fairly nuanced portraits of Meadows and Rep. Kevin McCarthy, who, along with Trump, eventually turned against her. She shares far more negative assessments about others in Trump's orbit, including Rep. Matt Gaetz, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, and adviser Rudy Giuliani, recounting how Giuliani groped her backstage during Trump's Jan. 6 speech. The narrative lags after the author leaves the White House, but the story intensifies as she's faced with subpoenas to testify and is forced to undergo deep soul-searching before choosing to sever ties with Trump and provide the incriminating information that could help take him down. A mostly compelling account of one woman's struggles within Trumpworld. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.