openpolitics.com

Maintaining the public image of a powerful and flawless businessman is difficult. And since Trump’s success depends, in large part, on his facade, he’ll do almost anything to defend it.

This defense has often involved suing or threatening to sue any journalist who publishes or intends to publish something that questions the veracity of his claims or the prudence of his actions.

Even if he knows he can’t win a particular lawsuit, the threat of one still scares off many publishers and journalists who either lack the funds to deal with the legal fees involved or dread the thought of years of arbitration.

Trump is especially defensive about the image of his vast wealth, which is why he sued Timothy O’Brien, the author of TrumpNation. Trump wants the media to believe that his net worth is in the billions, but, based on documents he personally showed to O’Brien, it would seem he’s actually worth somewhere between $150 and $250 million.

For years, O’Brien was bogged down by the lawsuit, which was eventually dismissed. Trump wasn’t displeased with the outcome, however, and he even admitted that the real goal of the lawsuit was to make O’Brien’s life miserable. So, in that regard, the lawsuit was a success for Trump.

Trump has also become a master of deflecting any facts that might contradict the image he nurtures.

Here’s a good example: during his campaign for president, in an appearance on NBC’s Today Show, Trump was asked about his court testimony in 1991, when he confessed to posing as John Baron and John Miller.

At first, Trump simply lied and claimed that this was the first time he’d ever heard about such a thing. But when the host pressed him about it, Trump expertly deflected the inquiry by questioning its legitimacy and suggesting that even asking about a 25-year-old incident was below the dignity of a journalist.

As we can see, Trump has a unique way of handling facts, which we’ll explore further in the next blinks.