Francesco Costa's New Book Explores Why Corruption Thrives in Trump's America

In his new book 'Come se ne esce. Il mondo dopo Donald Trump' (published by Mondadori in the Strade Blu series), Francesco Costa, director of the Post, examines the reasons behind Donald Trump's return to the White House and the broader crisis of democracy. The book argues that corruption has become costless in the U.S., as public trust in government has plummeted to historic lows. Costa highlights that Trump and his family have earned at least $2.3 billion from cryptocurrencies, while most other investors lost money. He also notes that Trump's sons invested in a tungsten mine in Kazakhstan that the president later financed with billions in public funds, and that the Trump Organization signed real estate deals in Qatar and Vietnam during White House negotiations with those governments. The book points to the mass firing of inspectors general in Washington, who were responsible for overseeing fraud and conflicts of interest. Costa traces the decline in trust from the Vietnam War and Watergate to the Iraq War and the 2008 financial crisis, noting that only 19% of Americans aged 18-29 trust the government today. He argues that both Democrats and Republicans have contributed to a culture where facts are ignored and partisanship prevails, allowing corruption to go unsanctioned. The book includes an extract published by Il Post on September 8, 2026, and is available in bookstores and online.