Trump Should Read These Books

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From the Tom Woods Letter, September 25, 2018.

What should Trump read?

I can already hear the criticisms.

“Woods, Trump got elected without the book learnin’ you nerds want him to have. You clueless libertarians may have all the arguments, but Trump knows how to connect with his base!”

No argument there.

But he’d sure be a lot better if he could do both things: connect with his base, and really, really understand the ideas (the good ones, anyway) he represents. A Republic, Not an Emp... Patrick J. Buchanan Buy New $20.99 (as of 01:55 UTC - Details)

For instance, although he’s far from consistent, and half the time even here he makes me crazy, Trump has spoken enough about nonintervention and related ideas to make the Deep State (which does exist) berserk. If he understood it better, he’d be a lot more consistent about it.

What’s more, it would obviously have benefited Trump to be aware of who the various scholars are out there who hold some of the ideas he favors, so he wouldn’t wind up surrounding himself by people who want to, you know, remove him from office.

So here’s a handful:

A Republic, Not an Empire, by Pat Buchanan. Since Pat is a right-winger, his noninterventionism would get a more respectful hearing from Trump and his supporters than a left-wing version would. This is an excellent work of American history, and its foreign-policy recommendations are just right.

The Revolution: A Manifesto, by Ron Paul. This is the kind of book that converts people. And it hones your instincts: once you hear its arguments, you instinctively know the right position on matters ranging from money to foreign policy to the Constitution.

What Has Government Done to Our Money? by Murray N. Rothbard. Short, but you’ll understand an enormous amount after reading it. The Revolution: A Mani... Ron Paul Best Price: $1.99 Buy New $6.99 (as of 11:00 UTC - Details)

The Economics and Ethics of Private Property, by Hans-Hermann Hoppe. That has to be one of the dullest book titles of all time. But it is an astonishingly brilliant and challenging work. This is way past the “prices help coordinate production” level. This book explains how the world works.

The Austrian Theory of the Trade Cycle and Other Essays, ed. Richard Ebeling. This short collection of essays explains why the economy moves in a boom-bust pattern, and what we can do about it. It is essential for people to understand this. Never again will you say, “We’d better make sure the Fed keeps interest rates low in order to keep the economy strong.”

Modern Times: The World From the Twenties to the Eighties, by Paul Johnson. A totally absorbing history of the twentieth century (but don’t bother with the updated version that takes the story through the nineties; Johnson gets noticeably worse in covering those years). Relies on Rothbard for its discussion of the Great Depression, is thorough and brilliant in its coverage of totalitarianism, chronicles the results of the socialist and interventionist leaders who plagued Africa after decolonization, and tells better U.S. history than do American historians (Johnson is British).

Just a few titles off the top of my head. More at this link.

Finally, a book Trump doesn’t need to read, but you’ll want to. I walk you step by step through various ways people (myself included) start side hustles online, and then I walk you through strategies for doing them well and successfully.

Oh, and I give it away for free.

Enjoy.

What Has Government Do... Murray N. Rothbard Best Price: $7.04 Buy New $6.50 (as of 05:50 UTC - Details) The Economics and Ethi... Hoppe, Hans-Hermann Check Amazon for Pricing. The Austrian Theory of... Ludwig von Mises, Murr... Best Price: $1.99 Buy New $8.95 (as of 07:50 UTC - Details) Modern Times: The Worl... Paul Johnson Best Price: $29.99 Buy New $28.97 (as of 04:30 UTC - Details)