29 On-the-Money Books / Buffett / RFK August 26, 2024August 26, 2024 25 ACTUAL MONEY BOOKS This is 4% shameless self-promotion. (The other 24 were written by others.) 1 NEW TRUMP BOOK At War with Ourselves: My Tour of Duty in the Trump White House is billed in this review as “Gen. McMaster’s blistering account of the Trump White House.” In his blistering, insightful account of his time in the Trump White House, McMaster describes meetings in the Oval Office as “exercises in competitive sycophancy” . . . [He] provides unique detail on Trump’s approach to foreign policy and — similarly to his successor in the national security adviser role, former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton, who wrote scathingly about the former president in a book published in 2020 — his account is likely to do little to reassure US allies about the prospects of a second Trump term. Right on the money. As are these: 3 BOOKS I’LL KEEP RECOMMENDING UNTIL DEMOCRACY IS SAVED > A Fever in the Heartland — how white Christian nationalists almost took over the country in the 1920’s. > Prequel — how they almost did again ten years later. > Blowback — third time’s a charm? This last, by Trump’s own Homeland Security Chief of Staff, is subtitled: “A Warning to Save Democracy from Trump’s Revenge.” One of my house guests this past weekend was a brilliant, well-read, wealthy friend of long standing — a gay Ivy League grad in his early sixties — who is not crazy about Trump but was less even crazy about Hillary and Joe. This year, he said — perhaps just to keep his host’s head from exploding — he’s undecided. He’s “listening.” Which is all we have a right to ask. If people do listen, I feel sure most will agree with Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, and Trump’s own former chiefs of staff, press secretaries, and Vice President — along with millions of less prominent Republicans — and vote blue. Or, at the very least, stay home — though that’s the equivalent of half a vote for Trump, so makes zero logical sense. My friend had never heard of A Fever, Prequel, or Blowback, and — more surprising to me — had not known of the widespread Nazi support (including in the House and Senate) prior to our entry into World War II — not least this famous rally in Madison Square Garden. He promised to take 3 minutes to watch on the ride home. (As a reader of this page, you know Trump’s dad was detained at a KKK rally in the 20s; and that, for years, Trump — not a big reader — kept this book of Hitler’s speeches by his bedside. His admiration for dictators and strongmen runs deep.) I’m hoping that come November 5, my friend will grit his teeth and vote blue. BUFFETT There are so many good books about him, but 29 recommendations is enough for one post, so I offer instead — and of perhaps more immediate interest anyway — this chart: Clearly, with the market at an all-time high*, at least one legendary investor thinks it’s a good time to have cash on the sidelines. *Trump predicts a crash if Kamala is elected. But he always predicts a crash if he’s not elected. And carnage and misery — just look at the banana republic Biden has turned this once-great country into. Vermin are poisoning our blood stream! Here’s the clip from four years ago (2 seconds): “If he’s elected, the stock market will crash.” Note that the Dow opened at 27, 138 on Election Day 2020 and as I type, at 41,254, is more than 50% higher. And Mexico, oddly, did not pay for the wall. And he bankrupted half a dozen businesses. Indeed, Republican strategist Rick Wilson says Everything Trump Touches Dies. Tucker Carlson calls him “the world champion of destroying things.” Sorry. I’ve had too much coffee. BONUSES Greg Palast: I was with RFK Jr. when he lost his mind. Newsweek: RFK Jr Beheading Whale Story Resurfaces After He Endorses Trump. (“Every time we accelerated on the highway, whale juice would pour into the windows of the car, and it was the rankest thing on the planet,” said Kick Kennedy.) Andy Borowitz: Entire Kennedy Family Changes Last Name.