Kenneth Glad
It examines how major decisions took shape inside a small circle. The account describes disputes over public messaging, sensitive information and Republican succession talk.
Regime Change, a new book by The New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, examines Donald Trump’s second presidency through internal episodes, private conversations and accounts from people familiar with the administration’s workings.
According to Axios, the book is based on about 1,000 interviews, giving it a broader foundation than a single set of insider claims. The administration it describes is shown as difficult to access, with major decisions often limited to a narrow group of advisers and officials.
Haberman has covered Trump for years, and TV 2 Denmark’s U.S. commentator Sofie Rud describes her as a highly credible reporter on Trump.
The book, published by Simon & Schuster, covers foreign policy, media power, technology leaders, the Epstein matter and Republican succession politics.
Vance urged caution after Iran strikes
One of the central scenes involves Vice President J.D. Vance and Trump after U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities in 2025.
During preparations for Trump’s public remarks, Vance advised him to soften the language, according to The New York Times. Trump was said to have rejected the warning.
“I know what I’m doing,” Trump allegedly replied.
Trump later claimed the operation had “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear capability. When Vance appeared on ABC News the next day, he avoided using that exact formulation.
That choice angered Trump, according to the book, turning a wording dispute into a test of message discipline.
“It is the word. Everyone just has to copy what I say. Obliterated. Obliterated,” he reportedly said.
Secrecy shaped the reporting
In an interview with The Guardian, Haberman said Trump’s health remained one of the hardest subjects to report on.
“His health has always been a very specific lockbox for him, going back decades,” she said.
Swan described the wider challenge in blunt terms, saying the administration had become extremely difficult for journalists to penetrate because so few people were involved in key decisions:
“It’s really fucking hard,” he told the newspaper.
His comment underlined one of the book’s central points: Access to Trump’s inner circle is limited, carefully controlled and often unavailable even to senior figures elsewhere in government.
Murdoch was asked about the future
The book furthermore describes an October White House dinner involving Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and media executive Rupert Murdoch.
According to the account, Trump asked Murdoch which man he preferred as a future Republican standard-bearer while both Vance and Rubio were present.
“I mean, J.D. has the potential to be really great,” Murdoch is quoted as saying..
When Trump asked about Rubio, Murdoch was more direct.
“Marco is brilliant,” he reportedly answered.
The scene adds to the book’s portrait of a presidency where loyalty, public language and future power were repeatedly measured in front of the people most affected.
Sources: TV 2 Denmark, The New York Times, The Guardian, Axios, ABC News, Simon & Schuster.
