A Note to Every Subscriber

Hello my friend,

I just got a strongly worded email from a subscriber who expressed deep concerns that some of my recent work has been behind a paywall. In this way, they feel that I’m doing a disservice to the public. The writer was very passionate, and, even if the language did get a little colorful, I always welcome sincere, thoughtful feedback, because it tends to make this newsletter stronger, and me more mindful.

On occasion, I do publish posts that are limited to paid supporting subscribers. These posts are my way of thanking those who have chosen to support this content financially, which helps me keep the vast majority of my pieces free for everyone — and with only 195 days before the election, maximizing how many people see this content is my primary goal. I also want to remind everyone that free subscriptions are always available to those struggling on a low or fixed income.

I deeply appreciate my subscribers at all levels — your support means so much to me — and, to be honest, I often find it hard to strike a balance between keeping this platform open and free for everyone, and making sure that this project succeeds in the long run.

To my supporting subscribers who have chosen to upgrade, you have made this entire newsletter possible. You have allowed me to invest the majority of my time in this pro-democracy endeavor while continuing to support my team, improve my content, and potentially expand into new areas that will benefit the community (which will be happening very soon). 

In 2016, during the Republican primary and the general election, I watched in horror as the media normalized Donald and gave him billions of dollars in free air-time, to the disadvantage of his opponents. For over a year, I sat by, helpless and demoralized, while Donald, thanks to the complicity of the Republican Party, broke norms, flouted the Constitution, and inflicted great harm.

In the fall of 2017, I finally decided to take action by handing over 40,000 pages of documents to The New York Times. It felt good to be proactive, but as brilliant as the ensuing Times piece by Sue Craig and her colleague Russ Buettner was, I worried their investigation into my family’s finances wouldn’t be enough to move the needle. It was then that I decided to write my first book, Too Much and Never Enough. 

It wasn’t a decision I came to easily. I knew there were risks involved — a vengeful family, Donald’s unhinged followers — but Donald’s behavior during the first two years of his administration forced my hand, and I believed I could no longer remain silent. I knew that if he were afforded a second term, it would be the end of American democracy. Tragically, we are facing the same potential outcome today.

No one knows how Donald came to be who he is better than his own family. Unfortunately, almost all of them remain silent out of loyalty or fear. I’m not hindered by either of those sentiments. In addition to the firsthand accounts I can give as my father’s daughter and my uncle’s only niece, I have the perspective of a trained clinical psychologist. There’s a story behind the cruelty and dysfunction, and I am the only Trump who is willing to tell it.

Donald’s ego is a fragile and inadequate barrier between him and the real world, which, thanks to his father’s money and power, he never had to negotiate by himself. Donald has always needed to perpetuate the fiction my grandfather started that he is strong, smart, and otherwise extraordinary, because facing the truth — that he is none of those things — is too terrifying for him to contemplate.

Thanks to his first criminal trial, that fiction is finally starting to unravel, and now is the time to exert pressure on his points of vulnerability.

As I wrote in Too Much and Never Enough, following the lead of my grandfather and with the complicity, silence, and inaction of his siblings, Donald destroyed my father. I can’t let him destroy my country, and I’ll do whatever I can to prevent that from happening.

This newsletter is a crucial part of that effort. As the audience grows, we’re conveying critical information to the public, including stories that could have a strong impact on the election, but that the corporate media is either unwilling or too inept to cover.

It’s working. Our newsletter is helping to shape the narrative, and our stories are getting through to the media every day.  This newsletter is being featured regularly on outlets like Newsweek, Yahoo News, and MSNBC.

Screenshot MSNBC

The more support I receive, the more I can share fact-based posts and analysis of the state this country is currently in. My aim is to illuminate a path to stopping Donald and his enablers this November and, hopefully, far beyond that. 

When I decided to stand up to Donald, I lost most of my family. What I gained was all of you: a community. Standing together to fight for our democracy has been a constant source of hope and purpose for me, as I hope it has been for you.

One final note

To those of you who are already paid subscribers but want to help spread the word even further, here are two options: One, give a Gift Subscription to somebody in your life; two, donate a subscription to somebody in the community who is unable to afford it.

Sincerely,