Man who ghostwrote 'Art of the Deal' warns Trump's 'extreme behaviour will get worse'

Tony Schwartz says the President's latest tweets 'won’t be the last time the president indulges in self-pity... and deflection'

President Donald Trump's ghostwriter for his 1987 "Art of the Deal" book says the leader's 'extreme behaviour will get worse' (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

President Donald Trump's "increasingly extreme behaviour" will only "get worse", according to the man who was the ghostwriter for the president's book “Art of the Deal”

Tony Schwartz spent hours upon hours to help write Mr Trump’s 1987 book and has a better grasp than most of the leader’s personality.

“I find his increasingly extreme behaviour entirely consistent and predictable,” wrote Mr Schwartz for the Washington Post.

Mr Schwartz wrote that for “five decades now, Trump’s pattern has been that the more aggrieved and vulnerable he feels, the more intensely he doubles down on the behaviours that have always worked for him in the past.”

Mr Schwartz quoted parts of Art of the Deal as examples of how he is not surprised Mr Trump’s current behaviour.

“Sometimes, part of making a deal is denigrating your competition,” he wrote in the book that discussed the then-real estate magnate's business style.

He said the President’s tweets in the wake of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn’s admission that he lied to the FBI about a particular conversation with former Russian Ambassador to the US were evidence of that. Mr Trump lambasted the FBI for having "destroyed" Mr Flynn's life while claiming they should have investigated his presidential rival Hillary Clinton.

The FBI and Congressional investigations into the alleged collusion between the 2016 campaign team and Russian officials continue as well, despite Mr Trump's lawyer Ty Cobb calling for a conclusion to it after Mr Flynn's guilty plea.

Mr Schwartz noted that it “won’t be the last time the president indulges in self-pity, deceit and deflection. In all likelihood, it will get worse.”

He explained that the President’s default position is that of a victim, based on his observations while ghostwriting the book for 18 months.

“‘Unfair’ has long been one of his favourite words,” wrote Mr Schwartz.

Mr Trump uses it often to describe trade deals in which the US is involved or how certain people have been treated by the media - like Mr Flynn or alt-right protesters during the violent Charlottesville, Virginia rally.

“In the weeks ahead, Trump will also probably double down on lying, even as he falsely accuses others of being dishonest,” Mr Schwartz wrote, pointing to the President’s claim that the voice on the now-infamous “Access Hollywood” audio was not his.

During the campaign, the leaked tape caused controversy as people heard Mr Trump use derogatory terms about female genitalia and vulgar language about women.

Mr Schwartz said he feels the President spins situations to “fit whatever he wants to believe and convey in any given moment” and that he is only obsessed with “winning”.

As a warning to those remaining loyal to Mr Trump, including son-in-law and White House adviser Jared Kushner who is in the thick of the FBI investigation: “When all is said and done, he couldn’t care less about anyone but himself."