ABC’s Trump Unauthorized: Two Sides to Every Story
This is a rather deprecating look at the man who has found his second wind through television, as the network chronicles everything from his first marriage to being pitched the idea for the The Apprentice by Mark Burnett himself.
Trump’s resolve was here, yet so was his indifference to Ivana when he was courting Marla Maples, who he eventually wed and divorced just a few years later. The man who hates to fire anyone had no problem doing so with his former wives.
You get to see Trump’s bullheadedness every time one of his projects failed, and his indifference to those who contested his construction projects, yet none of this is particularly telling as you already arrive at these conclusions from seeing him in action on The Apprentice, or if you have read any of his books, which are typically tongue-in-cheek.
In real life, Trump’s attempts to get New Yorkers behind a design of the Twin Towers is just the latest in a series of PR exercises to keep himself in the papers and ahead of everyone else.
This is a design which, of course, could have been entered in the original competition, yet Trump seems to feel that this particular design, which is eerily reminiscent of the towers, stands tantamount to the one chosen by the commission over a year ago.
Perhaps he is influenced by The World Trade Center Restoration Movement, which asserts that “The World Trade Center towers MUST rise again, at least as tall as before…or terror has triumphed.”; the quintessential New Yorker wants America to know that the city he helped rise to prominence stands tall again, as does he in having played in role in getting (Manhattan) there, of course.
This wasn’t the first time ABC attempted to show a different side to Donald Trump, however.
Last year you were able to see Trump’s nepotism at it’s best, as his three oldest Trumps kids seem to be eager to enter the family business.
Ivanka mentioned that Trump “raised us with values and tries to keep us as grounded as possible” while Trump maintains that he has “on a very heavy regimen of discipline”, which is interesting as Donald Jr. maintains that he was “spoiled culturally and educationally but not financially”.
Exactly what does that mean exactly, other than the fact that he can appreciate a good opera and a Harvard education, yet is willing to work hard for everything? Trump lives a clean life, and expects his children to do the same, although critics would suggest that beingg drug and alcohol free says little when morals are on the line.
Intelligently, Burnett has focused on showing how well Trump reinforces good morals through the business decisions he makes. The executives who are often fired on The Apprentice are those whose leadership was blinded by frailty. If you do not have the resolve to put your conviction behind your decisions, you do not deserve to work for Trump. Being double-minded isn’t good for anyone, and hurts the objective of the corporations’ mission in general. When you look at it that way, firing someone isn’t quite that bad.
This is part of the wonder and awe one has of Trump, and I’m not sure how showing Trump’s weaknesses and debunking the myth helped him or the network. There isn’t much you can do to a man who has exposed enough of himself, that most of us are not that concerened about learning anything more.
