Trump Ghost Writer Says He Won’t Vote For ‘No Class’ Billionaire

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign stop in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

The co-writer of Republican frontrunner Donald Trump’s 2000 book “The America We Deserve” said he’s not voting for the outspoken real estate mogul, who he said has shown “no class” on the 2016 campaign trail.

Writer Dave Shiflett said Trump deals in themes, rather than policy specifics. Shiflett made the remarks in a Wednesday interview on Fox News radio’s “Alan Colmes Show,” which was first reported by BuzzFeed.

“I used to think it was my first work of fiction,” Shiflett said of the book, timed for release when Trump was first toying with the idea of running for president with the Reform Party. “Who knows where he stands on anything, he’s a thematic sort of person.”

Asked if he would vote for the candidate, Shiflett said the Republican’s comments bashing Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) pushed him over the edge.

“I’ll tell you what really bugs me about him, where it really ripped it with me and Trump was the stuff he said about McCain,” he said. “McCain suffered severely, and I had a son who did two tours in Middle East during the last war and we had kids from here who went over there and some of them got hurt. They ain’t gonna be the same.”

He described Trump’s politics as “progressive” and “very liberal” back in 2000, when the mogul favored single-payer healthcare and tax increases for the very wealthy.

Shiflett also noted Trump’s disdain for former politician Pat Buchanan, whom he said had said “too many outrageous and controversial things” to ever be considered a viable candidate for president.

Listen to the full interview, via KFILE on Soundcloud:

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. TrumpTweets coming soon:

    “My former ghost rider is a loser. Desperate to shore up failing writing business.”

    “I fired Shiflett because he was a liar.”

    “Shiflett is disgusting individual. Talks with food in his mouth.”

    “Well known that Shiflett will say anything he’s paid to say!”

    “Everybody who deals with him knows that. That’s what I’ve been told by people very, very prominent in publishing industry.”

  2. Shiflett also noted Trump's disdain for former politician Pat Buchanan, whom he said had said "too many outrageous and controversial things" to ever be considered a viable candidate for president.

    Who. It’s the subject of “had said,” not the object of “he said.”

    Just sayin’. That one bugs me.

  3. Ghosts can’t vote anyway.

  4. “Ghost writer?” Pfft. Shiflett is dead to me."

  5. Avatar for wtf1 wtf1 says:

    Ah, hahahaha! I love it. There will be so many people not voting for tRump for so many reasons-this is just one of the good ones.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

33 more replies

Participants

Avatar for system1 Avatar for buckeyeborn Avatar for fgs Avatar for littlegirlblue Avatar for ncsteve Avatar for clunkertruck Avatar for deckbose Avatar for humpback Avatar for chammy Avatar for navamske Avatar for rudesan Avatar for mantan Avatar for m3man Avatar for sonsofares Avatar for longtimeobserver Avatar for ignoreland Avatar for jaybeeraybee Avatar for fiftygigs Avatar for darrtown Avatar for pshah Avatar for auntpee Avatar for edhedh Avatar for omahhum Avatar for tesla

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: