Jemima Kelly: What Is Trump Like Up Close?

Jemima Kelly is a columnist and reporter for the Financial Times and one of the most original and interesting voices in the British press. She writes about culture and economics and politics and always comes at them from unexpected angles, usually with a dose of humour.

As a reporter she likes to dive into worlds very different from her own, and in late 2022 she took a trip to a very strange world indeed: Palm Beach in Florida, island of billionaires, and home to Mar-a-Lago, the court of Donald Trump. She got herself invited to Mar-a-Lago, where she met Trump and observed him up close in his natural habitat. She wrote a brilliant account of that adventure for the FT magazine and followed it up with a second in early 2024.

I recommend reading both. But when I heard Jemima talking about her experience recently, I knew I wanted her on the podcast, because as well as being a great writer she's a natural raconteur, and has plenty to say that didn't make it on to the page.

What follows is a vivid, funny, and often surprising impression of what Trump is like in person. Jemima also gives a highly perceptive analysis of how his weird brand of personal charisma connects to his political success.

I would say this, but I truly think this is one of the best analyses of Trump’s personality and appeal you’re likely to come across.This conversation is in two parts. After Jemima and I talked about Trump at Mar-a-Lago, we recorded a bonus episode which starts off about being about Trump's marriage to Melania and veers off into a discussion of his love of music, before culminating in a grand theory of American presidential politics.

This first episode is free for everyone. The second is only for paid subscribers. I'll be releasing it shortly.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ian-leslie.com/subscribe