President Donald Trump got what some might consider a back-handed compliment from Gay Talese, author and former reporter for The New York Times, when he told MSNBC on Sunday that "Trump is America," adding "there is much of him throughout this country."
Talese was not offering support for the president as he warned that the president’s views were not to be readily accepted.
"I see this president as representing what we loathe, but also I do believe that his persona, his face, is a face of America that is real, that we just do not want to condone and shouldn't," Talese said.
"There are many, many Donald Trump faces in this country. He speaks to a constituency that is not the kind of people that you wish to associate with. You, me, anybody. But, there really is an anger in this country and there is a sense of isolation in this country," he added.
When asked if the political establishment in Washington miscalculated the support of the American public for Trump, he answered, "I believe that."
"And, I believe that the journalists of your generation, as opposed to mine, which goes back 50 years, we were very different in my time as journalists as compared to the ones today because we were much more aware of the low, basic, sometimes despicable character of our country, because many of us came out of a rough and tumble or down-and-out life," he said.
Talese has written 14 books on topics ranging from his reflections as a writer to social issues. In addition to The Times, he has also written for publications including The New Yorker and Esquire magazines.
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