Overview
- The book, published Tuesday, June 23, 2026, draws on hundreds of interviews to argue that a tiny group of trusted aides—about five or six people plus President Trump—dominated national policy and daily White House decision making.
- Haberman and Swan report that Benjamin Netanyahu visited the White House Situation Room and persuaded President Trump to pursue regime-change plans for Iran that senior officials privately derided but that Trump approved.
- The authors say Iran war planning was kept unusually tight so that key officials — including the Treasury secretary, the Energy secretary, and the director of national intelligence — were not fully briefed even one day before the launch.
- White House officials have accused the authors of using leaked or recorded Situation Room material, and the journalists have declined to discuss sourcing during a media tour that has amplified scrutiny of secret deliberations.
- The book details guardedness about the president’s health and anecdotes of erratic sleep and behavior, but the authors say they could not fully verify medical details because access to Trump’s health information is tightly controlled.