I know, I know, you’ve heard/read/seen enough about Donald Trump. I hear you. Who wants to read another book about him? But Commander in Cheat is different. Long-time golf player, golf observer and award-winning sports writer Rick Reilly examines the character of Donald Trump by looking at his golf game (and yes, the author has played golf with Trump).

Rick Reilly is a funny and engaging writer. He gets in a few sharp jabs too, like the book opening: “This book is dedicated to the truth. It’s still a thing.”

Reilly’s message is that if Trump is playing golf, he’s cheating. Or as the author says, his nose is so long “he could putt with it.” He moves his ball (or his opponent’s), he lies about his score, he lies about the number of championships he’s won. Same thing off the course. Trump has a solid record of stiffing his golf contractors. And bragging (ie. lying) about the worth of his properties, while at the same time suing cities for overvaluing them. And on and on and on.

I rolled my eyes (a lot) when I read the chapter on Barack Obama. You may recall that Trump repeatedly criticized Obama for the amount of golf he played while president and said that he, Trump, would be too busy working his great deals to leave the White House. And the reality? To date Trump has played almost triple the amount of golf that Obama did. And BTW, Obama is a real stickler for the rules and does not cheat at golf says the author.

But so what, you might be wondering. Who cares? Does it really matter if the president cheats at golf? At the end of the book, Reilly poses this very question. Here, for your consideration, is his answer:

If you’ll lie about every aspect of the game, is it that much further to lie about your taxes, your relationship with Russians, your groping of women?

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Or check out this similarly-themed DVD, You’ve been Trumped (from 2011). Ten odd years ago Donald Trump arrived in Scotland with grand schemes for a mega golf project (on environmentally-sensitive land, no less). He proceeded to bamboozle politicians with hugely-inflated job creation numbers. He rode roughshod over the local inhabitants, grossly insulting them along the way (you know, typical Trump). Gritty local inhabitants rallied together and fought back the best they could. Have a look at the trailer.

— Penny D.

Postscript. I don’t know if a reading blog is the place to say this, but I’m saying it. American politicians from both parties and the American people as a whole need to stand up and denounce the president’s recent racist tweets and comments. Such comments—and this should not need saying– are unacceptable. — P.D.