Some thoughts about A WARNING by Anonymous
Admittedly, I don't think my opinion is worth much, but for the two cents it is worth, here goes.
A WARNING left me truly shaken, even to the point of second-guessing and deep reflection about November 2020. Anonymous is truly afraid Trump can win re-election. This entire book is an argument for why Republicans (and Independents) should abandon support for him.
My impression is that Anonymous wrote this book specifically for Republican lawmakers first, and any Republicans with enough guts to read it, followed by Independents. The author's opinion of Trump supporters is scathing. Anonymous is a Republican but understands Democrats already know much of what is in this book. Little of it is new. A lot of the book contains quotes from previously printed sources (and LOTS of tweets) mixed unpredictably with personal recollections, but so textually interwoven that it's hard to tell them apart. For example, Anonymous provides quotes from Gary Cohn that were given to Woodward and appear in Fear.
As someone who has done ghost writing and lent heavy “editorial assistance” to other authors, it’s tempting to dig down and explore some of the literary devices used by the author to retain anonymity. But suffice it to say, the author does a good job of combining personal experience with material from outside sources to muddy the waters. This technique of combining sources with personal experience makes it difficult to tell exactly when the author joined the administration and when, or if, the author departed. The PR for this book asserted that the author would detail specific meetings (which is why I predicted it would be easy to ID Anonymous) but that is actually not the case. Meetings are not recreated in this book other than in generally descriptive paragraphs with embedded quotes that are rarely assigned to a named individual. The author is exceedingly careful to distance him or herself from specific time and place. Did Anonymous write this book alone or did Anonymous have help? Only time will tell.
I closed the book wanting to honor the author’s desire to remain Anonymous and agreeing with the rationale behind his/her desire to do so. The author says he/she is not afraid to surface but argues the purpose of the book will be hijacked by personal attacks if a name is attached.
Even if I knew with 100% certainty who Anonymous is, I wouldn't post it (at least for now). But…
Human nature being what it is, I will say there are two candidates I’m focusing on, and several that I’ve eliminated.
Based on what is in this book I'm guessing the author is:
1. A male
2. At least 60 years of age
3. ...who departed the administration some time in the past 6 months, likely on principle
4. ...who studied geopolitics, foreign relations, leadership or the history of conflict
One of my candidates has been speculated about by some people, but the second person I have not seen mentioned anywhere. I really hope it’s this second person, because this is someone who is very difficult to attack on charges of hypocrisy, ulterior motives or lack of credibility. I’ve always believed both of these people resigned on principle; however, if it is the second person I genuinely believe it would blow some minds.
Having said all that, the speculation above could be wishful thinking.
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