Team of Vipers

My 500 Extraordinary Days in the Trump White House

By: Cliff Sims

Narrated by: Daniel Thomas May, Cliff Sims - introduction

Length: 14 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's Summary

Note: Per author's request, profanity has been removed from both the book and the audio program. 

The Instant New York Times Best Seller 

"Sims’s vivid portrait of Trump shrewdly balances admiration with misgivings, and his intricate, engrossing accounts of White House vendettas and power plays have a good mix of immersion and perspective. The result is one of the best of the recent flood of Trump tell-alls." (Publishers Weekly) 

The first honest insider’s account of the Trump administration. If you hate Trump you need the truth; if you love Trump you need the truth.

After standing at Donald Trump’s side on Election Night, Cliff Sims joined him in the West Wing as special assistant to the president and director of White House message strategy. He soon found himself pulled into the president’s inner circle as a confidante, an errand boy, an advisor, a punching bag, and a friend. Sometimes all in the same conversation. 

As a result, Sims gained unprecedented access to the president, sitting in on private meetings with key congressional officials, world leaders, and top White House advisors. He saw how Trump handled the challenges of the office, and he learned from Trump himself how he saw the world. 

For 500 days, Sims also witnessed firsthand the infighting and leaking, the anger, joy, and recriminations. He had a role in some of the president’s biggest successes, and he shared the blame for some of his administration’s worst disasters. He gained key, often surprising insights into the players of the Trump West Wing, from Jared Kushner and John Kelly to Steve Bannon and Kellyanne Conway. 

He even helped Trump craft his enemies list, knowing who was loyal and who was not. 

And he took notes. Hundreds of pages of notes. In real-time. 

Sims stood with the president in the eye of the storm raging around him, and now he tells the story that no one else has written - because no one else could. The story of what it was really like in the West Wing as a member of the president’s team. The story of power and palace intrigue, backstabbing and bold victories, as well as painful moral compromises, occasionally with yourself. 

Team of Vipers tells the full story, as only a true insider could.

©2019 Cliff Sims (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Underwhelming and OMG - the performance?

It’s ok, but lacking in the highly anticipated controversy. But why am I reviewing today?? To put it in Trump tweet terms - - .... IT’S CENSORED! That’s right folks...all the juicy stuff we were looking forward to hearing in performance is literately audibly BEEPED out. What’s going on Audible? I’m definitely returning this one, just on principle. Really takes away from the limited enjoyment.

Wtf is the point of the beeping?

Why would you beep out the swearing in a audiobook? This is the dumbest idea I've heard of for a long time!

Censored words

The bleeping of words in this book is much more annoying than any expletives that might have been used.

Ultimate snooze fest - great for insomniacs

After 5 chapters, I just gave up. SOOOO BORING! I have no idea how this reached publication. There is nothing of interest and Sims is clearly still enamored with Donald. Also a good friend of Sessions, which is all you need to know about the author. Don't waste your time. Buy something else.

Terrible

Filled with uninteresting, minute details that add nothing to the story except its length. And when not providing irrelevant details, it tries to soar to great sweeping patriotic heights using flowery and symbolic language that falls flat and feels empty.

Boring, never gets to the point.

I've listen to several audible books on the Trump Administration most are good or very good (the Woodward book "Fear" is great). The performance here is flat and annoying. The info. is a slow drag, it seems like it never gets to the point, not well organized. I will ask for a refund.

Avoid

It is a view into the mind of a young Trump loving little cunt. Self rightous, naive and oportunistic all at the same time. I can’t believe they gave this guy a book deal.

What’s with the beeping - really?

What going on with audible? What is the beeping about? I paid money for this book and it’s censored? Is beeping curse words and censoring words the future of audible? Is the hard cover book curse words beeped out? Ridiculous! Can I return?

Charlatan hyperbole

The title is misdirecting as the author "tells the truth" about the administration while making them all look like they are on a pedestal. Each minute of the story goes on to show everyone in the White House and campaign as a hero for the nation. It's almost like modern yellow journalism.

not recommended save your money

I made it through nine chapters before finally having to call it quits and asked Audible for my money back.

The weird beeping out of words they deemed defensive was distracting and then irritating. If you can't even use the language accurately why are you writing?

Bob Woodward's book Fear and Rick Wilson's book Everything Trump Touches Dies are better at objectively describing this Administration.

The author seems to have his tongue firmly planted on Trump scrotum licking the entire time. It was an image I could not get out of my head while listening to the book.

Wait till the library has it and check it out for free if you feel the need to punish yourself for some reason.

Bleeping out swear words? Really?

The narrator was less than electrifying, the swear words were bleeped out and it generally came across as pretty self-serving.

Trump Hugger Fuction

Thought I’d listen to this in the interest of balance. I’m about half way through this Trump loving tosh!

Not so much nest of vipers, more pile of poop!

Self serving and nothing new revealed

I’m not sure what I expected but had I given it thought, it probably would have been what I got.

With Cliff Sims giving his account of the White House calamity, he, at best, supports some of the other accounts that have already been described in other books, interviews and newspaper articles about the Trump administration.

If you’re anti-Trump, you’ll be disappointed in the lack of scathe Sims inflicts upon him. If you’re pro-Trump, the few occasions Sims did paint Trump in a less-than-positive light will still, no doubt irk you. If you’re a true conservative and concerned about the current state of the Republican party, you are probably the right audience for this.

I’m neither of these positions so I am usually able to approach books like this with a fair amount of objectivity. Sims sides with Trump on many of his policy positions (immigration being the main one) and saves most of his criticism for his fellow White House staff members - John Kelly, in particular.

But the book brings us nothing new, as far as I’m concerned. Bob Woodward’s ‘Fear’ was very enjoyable and informative. Even Michael Wolffs ‘Fire and Fury’, for all of its tabloid-esque sensationalism and questionable claims, was a more enjoyable book.

Maybe Team of Vipers is just a victim of timing. Had this been released 12 months ago, I’m sure I’d have a more favourable opinion of it.. but that’s not the case and I found myself a little bored at times.

Don’t be fooled by the title

I was expecting another tell all on the Trump WH, but Sims writes as if he and Trump were best friends, as if Trump is a great president of all tomes, that Simms had a hand in getting him elected and was a part of some of Trumps “many” accomplishments. Problem is Trump denied ever knowing him and Trump has done nothing but undo everything Obama did in his tenure.
There are some interesting stories and the narration is good, but he comes at things from a christian perspective with rise tinted glasses. If you love Trump buy it. If you don’t I would mot recommend it.

Trump believer spins a biased story of trump chaos

An interesting and believable account of the chaos in Trump’s White House from somebody who was very close to the action. However the author believes that his God and Trump are right about everything and have the answer to everything.
The history is interesting but the spin is too biased.

Well, its another view...

Whilst I expected this to be balanced against the less complimentary Trump accounts (which was my reason for listening), I did not expect it to be quite so biased as if a paid piece of PR. This is an echo chamber from a pro Trumper. About 20% was interesting and added a different slant but overall, not great.

i think it was well balanced

I think it was a well balanced biok.

However, the guy reading it out made Trump sound like Micheal Jackson from South Park.