Historical Figure
Donald Trump
b. 1946
President of the United States (2017–2021; since 2025)
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"2024 Victory Speech" — November 6, 2024
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Biography
Donald John Trump is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021.
Timeline
The story of Donald Trump, told in moments.
Takes control of his father's real estate company at 25 and renames it the Trump Organization. He shifts the focus from outer-borough apartments to Manhattan skyscrapers. Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue opens in 1983. His name, in gold letters, becomes his primary product.
His casino empire collapses. The Taj Mahal in Atlantic City filed for bankruptcy the year it opened. He owes banks roughly $3.4 billion personally and corporately. Banks keep him alive because a bankrupt Trump is worth less than a famous one. He loses the Plaza Hotel, the Trump Shuttle airline, and his yacht.
The Apprentice premieres on NBC. The show, in which contestants compete for a job at the Trump Organization, makes him a household name beyond New York. "You're fired" becomes a catchphrase. The show runs for 14 seasons. By the time it ends, he has spent more time on television than in boardrooms.
Announces his presidential campaign by descending a golden escalator in Trump Tower. Polls give him a 1% chance. Political commentators treat it as a publicity stunt. Sixteen Republican rivals will drop out over the next year.
Elected 45th President of the United States, defeating Hillary Clinton. He loses the popular vote by nearly 3 million but wins the Electoral College 304 to 227. He is 70 years old, the oldest person elected to a first term. He has never held public office or served in the military.
Impeached by the House of Representatives for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress related to a phone call with the president of Ukraine. The Senate acquits him. He is impeached again in 2021. Two impeachments, zero convictions. No other president has been impeached twice.
Supporters storm the U.S. Capitol during the certification of the 2020 election results. Lawmakers evacuate. Five people die. Trump is impeached a second time, for incitement of insurrection, making him the only president in American history to be impeached twice. The Senate acquits him both times.
Found guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a New York courtroom. He is the first current or former U.S. president convicted of a crime.
Elected 47th President of the United States, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris. He becomes the second president in American history to serve non-consecutive terms, after Grover Cleveland in 1892.
In Their Own Words (20)
Let our politicians give back our police department's power to keep us safe. Unshackle them from the constant chant of "police brutality" which every petty criminal hurls immediately at an officer who has just risked his or her life to save another's.
"Bring Back the Death Penalty. Bring Back Our Police!" An advert taken out by Trump in the New York Daily News and other newspapers in the wake of the arrests of the Central Park Five (whose convictions were eventually d in 2002 after Matias Reyes confessed to the assault) (May 1, 1989), 2002
So the Reform Party now includes a Klansman, Mr. Duke, a neo-Nazi, Mr. Buchanan, and a communist, Ms. Fulani. This is not company I wish to keep.
As quoted in, 2000
I'm on the conservative side, Pat Buchanan is Attila the Hun.
As quoted in Selected Quotes from Newsweek Magazine, 1999 —, 1999
I surround myself with the best people. I know the best people.
On an interview (1999 November 26), 1999
People want me to [run for president] all the time … I don't like it. Can you imagine how controversial I'd be? You think about him [Bill Clinton] and the women. How about me with the women? Can you imagine?
On '''', as quoted in, 1999
Artifacts (15)
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