What Does Stephanie Grisham's Book Reveal About Donald Trump's Temper?
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Reports of Donald Trump having angry outbursts while he was president have been well-documented. A report from Politico in 2017 said that White House aides claimed the then-POTUS used anger as a managerial tool. "For Trump, anger serves as a way to manage staff, express his displeasure or simply as an outlet that soothes him," the publication wrote. Politico also reported that sources said Trump would often lose his temper on a staffer and then "act as if nothing ever occurred."
Using anger to motivate staff was not a presidential technique unique to Trump, though, and even John F. Kennedy was known for being abrupt with staff. "The difference with Trump is the lack of filter, so we're seeing much more of his thinking than we ever saw with past presidents," White House historian Timothy Naftali told Politico at the time.
Stephanie Grisham, a former White House staffer who served as press secretary for Trump, wrote a book detailing the former president's behavior behind closed doors, titled "I'll Take Your Questions Now: What I Saw at the Trump White House." She worked under Trump for nine months before being hired on by Melania Trump, per The Hill. In the book, Grisham had several revelatory notes about Trump's time as president, including how the Stormy Daniels scandal caused a rift in his marriage, per CNN. Keep reading to learn the surprising way Grisham alleged an aide used music to soothe Trump's anger.
Donald Trump's anger was not just for the cameras
Before Stephanie Grisham began working directly for Donald Trump, she believed that his public outbursts were merely for show. Her perception changed once she became his press secretary. "When I began to see how his temper wasn't just for shock value or the cameras ... I began to regret my decision to go to the West Wing," she wrote in "I'll Take Your Questions Now: What I Saw at the Trump White House" (via The New York Times).
According to Grisham, White House counsel Pat Cipollone had an especially contentious relationship with the former POTUS, but Trump disliked being corrected by any staffer. "He didn't like them telling him that things he wanted to do were unethical or illegal," Grisham wrote. Eventually, Trump's anger would subside, but only briefly. "So he'd scream at them. But then he'd usually listen. And then yell at them again later," the one-time press secretary wrote. Grisham also claimed that one aide, Max Miller (who is Grisham's ex-boyfriend), had an inventive way of dealing with Trump during his angry outbursts. He would allegedly play some of Trump's favorite songs, which included "Memory" from the musical "Cats," in order to calm his anger, per the NYT.
After news of Grisham's book broke, Trump disavowed his former press secretary's claims, and attacked her job performance. "She became very angry and bitter after her break up and as time went on she was seldom relied upon," he said in a statement, per The Hill.