The tell-all book about President Trump’s White House that has Washington, D.C., buzzing will be released four days ahead of schedule, its publisher announced Thursday.
Michael Wolff’s “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House” was expected to hit bookstores Tuesday. But publisher Henry Holt and Co. said it will go on sale Friday, despite an attempt by President Trump’s lawyers to block its publication.
“Due to unprecedented demand, we are moving the on-sale date for all formats of ‘Fire and Fury’ by Michael Wolff, to Friday, January 5, at 9 a.m. ET, from the current on-sale date of Tuesday, January 9,” a spokeswoman for the publishing company told the Washington Examiner.
CNN first reported the book's new release date.
Wolff also announced the book will go on sale four days earlier than planned.
“Here we go. You can buy it (and read it) tomorrow. Thank you, Mr. President,” he tweeted.
Here we go. You can buy it (and read it) tomorrow. Thank you, Mr. President.— Michael Wolff (@MichaelWolffNYC) January 4, 2018
The book caused a stir after excerpts were published by various news outlets this week. One lengthy excerpt from New York Magazine has the White House pitted against former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, who made comments about the president and the Trump family in the book.
Bannon’s comments prompted a biting statement from Trump, who accused Bannon of leaking information to the press to boost his importance and of having little influence with the president.
“Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my presidency,” Trump said in his statement. “When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind.”
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Thursday the book has “numerous mistakes” and is a “complete fantasy and just full of tabloid gossip.”
Trump’s lawyer, Charles Harder, sent a letter to Wolff and Henry Holt and Co. on Thursday demanding they “cease and desist from any further publication, release or dissemination” of the book.
Harder said the president’s lawyers are “investigating numerous false and/or baseless statements” made about Trump in the book, and are exploring a possible defamation suit.
Bannon received a cease-and-desist letter from Harder on Wednesday and accused him of violating a non-disclosure agreement he and others who worked on the Trump campaign signed.