It was all over for Donald Trump. He had lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden – the first time that a sitting president had been defeated since George HW Bush was ousted by Bill Clinton in 1992. And with that toppling of a self-styled monarch came the collapse of his court as those loyal to him – or, more accurately, to the power he held – fled the sinking ship.
In 2017, while declaring the opioid crisis in the United States a public emergency, Trump gave an emotional speech about how his older brother, Fred Trump, had suffered from alcoholism and died in 1981 aged just 43. The former President was speaking to a room filled to the brim with former addicts, parents of overdose victims, as well as treatment specialists. Trump noted how addiction had destroyed his brother s life. I had a brother, Fred, he said. Great guy, best-looking guy. Best personality, much better than mine. But he had a problem, a problem with alcohol. And he would tell me, don t drink. He was substantially older and I listened to him and I respected him. He s also added, don t smoke.