For veteran journalist Arun Kumar, the idea for Trumpiana began with a single word: Trump.
Kumar, editor-in-large of The American Bazaar, is set to publish Trumpiana: The Wrecking Machine, an ebook chronicling the first 60 weeks of Donald Trump’s second presidency through humor, satire and political observation.
The book grew out of Kumar’s weekly Trumpiana column, first published in The American Bazaar and later republished on The Times of India website. What began as a humorous way of capturing the week’s Trump-related developments gradually developed into a larger political chronicle as the column found a wider audience.
In an exclusive conversation with The American Bazaar, Kumar spoke about how the column came about, what led him to turn it into a book, and how humor, satire and wordplay became central to his way of documenting the Trump era.
Asked how the idea for the column began, Kumar traced it back to Trump’s second presidential inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025.
“One ‘big’ beautiful word: Trump.
Seriously, the idea germinated as Donald Trump delivered his second presidential inaugural address on Jan. 20, 2025 with his trademark hyperbole.
As an avid reader of Sunday funnies, I always look for the ‘punny’ side of things. And as he spoke, I rated the POTUS pun potential thinking “write baby write!” But not your hard nosed newsman’s staid stuff that you dish out everyday.
As the week rolled by with an endless stream of Trumpiana, we decided to provide our readers a little capsule of the week’s events laced with humor – named ‘Trumpiana’ of course.
With friends greeting the column from ‘irreverent’ to ‘delightful’ to ‘a weekend treat’ to ‘I’m lovin’ it,’ we were on a roll. The rest as they say is history, in making!”
What started as a weekly experiment soon showed signs that it could become something much bigger. As the column gained popularity and received wider exposure through The Times of India, Kumar began thinking beyond individual installments and toward a larger collection.
“Well, Trump is a gift that keeps giving. As the column gained popularity with a major newspaper like the Times of India giving it much wider exposure, there was no going back.
And as we approached the one year mark, we decided to turn the growing collection into a journal for those who came in late with a couple of introductory chapters giving it context.
We look back at the making of the Trump phenomenon starting with his ride down a golden escalator on June 16, 2015 to announce his first presidential run to his chaotic first term to complete the story so far.”
For Kumar, the book is not simply a compilation of columns. It is also intended to give readers who may not have followed Trumpiana from the beginning a way to understand the political developments that have shaped Trump’s rise and return to the White House.
“The goal, as you call it, is to offer a window on the Trump era as it unfolds week by week. Indeed, the book is designed for those have never tasted the delights of ‘Trumpiana’ to savor it in tasty bites.
I hope readers enjoy what I would call Cliff Notes or a political primer for dummies! My intent is to take them, as the tagline says, on “A fun ride with the Demolition Man out to upend the world order.””
Kumar’s columns often take a single Trump moment and use it as a starting point to examine larger questions about American politics and society. He said those moments serve as an entry point for readers rather than the entire focus of the writing.
“The idea is to always present the bigger picture. The Trump moments, as you call them, are simply pegs to hold the reader’s attention as also to tell the story without pontificating or sounding pedantic.”
Another recognizable feature of the series is its titles. From “King Donald” to “Tariffs, tantrums, threats, and a temblor!” and “Trumple bells, Trumple bells, Trump all the way!”, Kumar has used wordplay to turn political developments into memorable phrases.
READ: Trump 2.0 in tasty bites! (October 5, 2026)
“As a kid, I always wanted to become a cartoonist, who makes a pithy comment with just a few lines. But alas, I couldn’t draw. The word play is my way of telling a story in miniature in just a few words.
My personal favorite is: ‘Howdy Modi, Namaste Trump, Bye Dosti, Hi Grump!’ In eight words it tells you how India-U.S. relations have come a full circle between two Trump terms.”
His writing frequently combines satire, irony, historical references and pop-culture imagery, a style that Kumar said developed partly because of the nature of Trump’s own political communication.
“As I said at the beginning, Trump is different. A master of the weave, it’s easy to get lost in the labyrinth of his own word play. I believe, this is a beautiful way of negotiating his red herrings and meme land mines.”
For Kumar, satire is also a way to make political analysis accessible beyond readers who closely follow politics.
“Sure. Trump is no ordinary politician. Combining political analysis with wit and humor and a dash of irony makes this extraordinary political phenomenon accessible to all. Humor is a great leveller. So it helps to reach from political junkies to lay readers alike.”
Writing about the same political figure week after week can be demanding, particularly during a presidency that has generated a constant stream of controversy and news. But Kumar does not view the process that way.
“Believe it or not, there is nothing hard about it. It may not be a piece of cake, but for me, it’s a labor of love. Come Friday, I don my ‘cartoonist’s hat,’ read my notes and sleep over it. And hey presto, words start flowing ‘beautifully’ next morning.”
That routine has now resulted in a collection that attempts to capture the Trump era as it unfolds, combining political commentary with humor and wordplay. Trumpiana: The Wrecking Machine brings together Kumar’s weekly observations while also looking back at the political journey that brought Trump from his famous golden escalator ride in 2015 to a second term in the White House.
For Kumar, the book is ultimately an attempt to make sense of an extraordinary political period without losing the humor that first inspired the column.
The book is available on Amazon.
For more information, review copy or author interviews, write to:
anil@americanbazaaronline.com