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What happens inside the White House when a president returns with more power and fewer constraints? Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan set out to answer that in Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, a 2026 bestseller about the first year of Trump's second term.
This summary covers the book's reporting on executive power, the claims it makes, the reception from critics and the White House, and how to read it, plus an honest look at the book's limits. You will find more titles like it in our Politics & Society book summaries.
Best for: readers who follow American politics and want a detailed, reported account of the second Trump presidency. Reading time of the book: about 496 pages (roughly ten to twelve hours). Reading time of this summary: about six minutes.
The book in one sentence
Regime Change is a reported account of Donald Trump's second presidency, based on about 1,000 interviews, that portrays a presidency using expanded executive power and few institutional checks.
About the author and the book
Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan are journalists known for covering Trump. Regime Change was published by Simon & Schuster on June 23, 2026 and runs 496 pages. The authors say it draws on about 1,000 interviews. It topped the New York Times nonfiction list from the issue of July 12 through August 30, 2026, according to the Times list of number-one books.
Regime Change at a glance
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Subject | The first year of Donald Trump's second presidency |
| Sources | About 1,000 interviews over roughly two years, per the authors |
| Themes | Executive power, immigration, National Guard deployments, a Middle East war, actions against critics |
| Reception | WSJ questioned the reliance on anonymous sources; Trump dismissed the book as largely made up |
5 ideas worth remembering
1. An imperial presidency
The subtitle frames the presidency as centred on one person with expanded executive power and fewer institutional constraints.
2. Decisions made by a few
The authors report on how major decisions, including the decision to start a war with Iran, were made.
3. Inside the White House
The book describes internal meetings, including debates over how to handle the Epstein files, based on the authors' sources.
4. Personal profit
The publisher says the book examines how Trump has treated the presidency as a source of personal profit.
5. Contested sourcing
Critics note that the case rests on anonymous sources, while the administration has disputed some specific claims.
What the book is
Regime Change is a reported account of Donald Trump's second presidency, written by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan. The authors say it draws on about 1,000 interviews conducted over roughly two years, beginning in 2024. It was published by Simon & Schuster on June 23, 2026 and runs 496 pages in hardcover.
The publisher describes the book as an account of the first year of the second term. It examines how Trump has used expanded executive power, including actions on immigration, National Guard deployments, a new Middle East war and Justice Department actions against his critics. It also looks at how he has treated the presidency as a source of personal profit, and how his legal and political setbacks may have strengthened his resolve.
This is a book of reporting, not of policy argument. Its method is to reconstruct decisions and scenes from the accounts of people who were present, and its value depends on how far readers trust those accounts.
What it reports
The title and subtitle, Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, signal the authors' framing: a presidency centred on one person and unusually unconstrained by institutions. Within that frame, the authors report on how decisions were made. One decision they describe is Trump's choice to start a war with Iran.
The book also reports internal White House meetings. According to the authors, in July 2025 officials met without Trump to discuss the Epstein files, and Vice President Vance reportedly proposed having Tucker Carlson interview Ghislaine Maxwell, an idea other officials opposed. The book further describes Maxwell being interviewed by Todd Blanche and moved to a minimum-security camp in Texas, a transfer that reportedly conflicted with a 2019 Bureau of Prisons policy. The White House denied that she received preferential treatment.
Smaller scenes illustrate the president's manner. The authors describe Trump mocking technology executives who courted him, and showing them a document, attributed to a historian, that compared his power with that of famous rulers. The author of that document was later revealed to be a golf caddy, not a historian.
Reception, sourcing and how to read it
Reception has been divided along familiar lines. A Wall Street Journal review argued that the book's case against Trump is only as strong as its anonymous sources, and said the authors captured his bluster but accepted it too readily. Trump called Haberman a third-rate writer and dismissed the book as largely made up. Reporting on the book notes that the administration has not publicly disputed the detailed dialogue attributed to its senior officials, though the White House has denied specific claims such as the Maxwell favouritism allegation.
These points matter for how you read it. Books built on anonymous sourcing allow readers to see inside rooms they could never enter, but they ask for trust that cannot be fully verified. Supporters of the authors point to their track record as White House reporters; critics point to the reliance on unnamed sources and to the authors' perceived stance toward the president.
The book is a major seller. It reached number one on the New York Times nonfiction list for a long stretch of the summer of 2026, from the issue of July 12 through August 30. As with any contested political book, the best approach is to read it alongside other accounts and to separate what is documented from what is attributed.
Strengths and limits
What works well
- Detailed reporting drawn from about 1,000 interviews.
- Authors with long experience covering Trump.
- Vivid scenes that show how decisions were made.
- A major bestseller that shaped public debate.
Where it falls short
- Heavy reliance on anonymous sources, as a Wall Street Journal review noted.
- Critics argue it accepts Trump's bluster too readily; others dispute its framing.
- The White House has denied specific claims, such as the Maxwell allegation.
- At nearly 500 pages, it is long and detailed.
Who should read it?
Who should read it: Readers who want a detailed, reported account of the second Trump presidency and are willing to weigh sourcing. Who may skip it: Readers wanting a short, policy-focused analysis or a book without anonymous sourcing.
Key takeaways
- The book is a reported account based on about 1,000 interviews, per the authors.
- It frames the presidency as centred on one person with expanded power.
- Some claims rely on anonymous sources and have been denied or disputed.
- The administration has disputed particular claims but not the detailed dialogue publicly, according to reports.
- Read it alongside other accounts.
FAQ
Who wrote Regime Change?
Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.
When was it published?
Simon & Schuster published it on June 23, 2026.
Is it a bestseller?
Yes. It was number one on the New York Times nonfiction list from the issue of July 12 through August 30, 2026.
How did Trump respond?
He dismissed the book as largely made up and criticised Haberman's writing.
Is the book neutral?
It is a work of reporting with a critical perspective on its subject; readers should weigh its sourcing and read other accounts too.
Keep reading
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- Deep Work by Cal Newport: Summary, Key Ideas & Review: a guide to focused effort in a distracted world
- Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: Summary, Key Ideas & Review: a short, sharp book on resistance and creative work
- All Politics & Society summaries
- Back to the SummarBooks home page
Get the book
If you want the full reporting and context, you can get a copy of Regime Change on Amazon.
Disclosure: as an Amazon Associate, SummarBooks earns from qualifying purchases. If you buy through the links above, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This summary is an independent overview and does not replace reading the book. This is an independent, non-partisan summary of a contested political book. It reports the authors' claims and the responses to them, and does not endorse either side.