Politics tells fascinating, beautiful, ugly, incredible, and sometimes strange, if not unimaginable, stories. One such story is the rise of the colorful and unconventional politician and two-time U.S. president, Donald Trump. He was the first alternative candidate to win the White House in 2016 and 2024, despite not previously holding any public office.
Before entering politics in 2015, Trump was a respected businessman and a prominent figure in the American entertainment industry (a reality TV star), who was largely admired by Americans. However, after entering politics, everything changed, and Trump became someone people either loved or couldn’t stand. Love him or not, he is a once-in-a-lifetime figure.
Childhood and Youth
Donald John Trump was born on June 14, 1946, in the Queens borough of New York City as the fourth of five children of Frederick C. and Mary MacLeod Trump. Frederick Trump was a builder and real estate developer specializing in constructing and selling middle-class apartments in Queens, Staten Island, and Brooklyn, New York. Young Donald was a lively and bright, yet unruly child. At the age of 13, his parents sent him to the New York Military Academy, hoping the school would discipline young Donald and channel his energy in the right direction. The military academy was both a significant and challenging period in the future multi-billionaire and U.S. president’s life. It was a shocking change for a 13-year-old to be told one summer day that he wouldn’t be attending a regular school but a military academy located about 100 km from West Point. He would no longer be with his family in their luxurious home.
The school was not just about academics. Students were required to wear uniforms and, from time to time, received tools to polish floors and carry out other physical tasks. Trump performed well at the academy both academically and socially, becoming a popular athlete and student leader by the time he graduated in 1964. During summer breaks, Trump worked on construction sites for his father’s company. He enrolled at Fordham University in the Bronx but later transferred to the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, graduating with a degree in economics in 1968. Trump was not drafted into the Vietnam War due to his studies and medical exemptions. Besides his father, who greatly influenced Donald’s career choice, real estate developer William Zeckendorf also had a significant impact. Young Trump’s dreams and ambitions far exceeded those of his father.
Early Beginnings in the Business World
After graduating, Trump joined the family company, Elizabeth Trump & Son, which he later renamed the Trump Organization. In 1971, Trump moved to Manhattan, where he met many powerful individuals. “It was a gift for me,” he later commented. “You know, being someone’s son could have been competitive for me. This way, I got the whole of Manhattan to myself.” Confident in the economic opportunities offered by the big city, Trump ventured into large development projects that promised significant profits. Trump seized these opportunities by using attractive architectural designs and gaining public recognition.
However, it’s always worth noting that Trump had a relatively favorable and eased path to success. He came from a wealthy family with a prosperous father, so his business success was practically guaranteed. By the 1970s, Frederick Trump’s company was valued at around $200 million. Donald later admitted that he received a loan of several million dollars from his father. In addition to a financial head start, he also had social connections and a good societal status. According to some analyses, had Trump invested his inherited money into mutual funds instead of business ventures, he would be equally wealthy today.
Donald’s father, Fred, was, like his son, a colorful character and a workaholic who worked from dawn to dusk, and he was an extremely ambitious man. Mary Trump was a very theatrical individual who loved being the center of attention. When their son Robert was born, Mary was often ill. Donald grew up with a lack of attention and affection from his parents, which may explain his character as someone who enjoys being at the center of media attention and has an insatiable appetite for publicity.
Media Recognition and Building the Trump Organization
Donald Trump sought publicity as early as the 1960s. His first business venture was producing a Broadway play. It was not a successful production and closed after ten weeks. Like his parents, Donald always possessed a theatrical personality. He realized he could pursue success in New York through his name, image, and persona—these were his assets. Even before he “put two bricks together,” he was featured in The New York Times as a rising tycoon.
Trump quickly convinced his father to entrust him with an independent project, managing an abandoned apartment complex, Swifton Village, which he renovated and then sold relatively quickly for a significant profit for the company. This was a turning point, and by 1971, Trump was appointed CEO of the Trump Organization. When the Pennsylvania Central Railroad went bankrupt, Trump had the opportunity to secure rights to purchase railroad land on Manhattan’s west side. When initial plans for housing proved unfeasible due to poor economic conditions, Trump promoted the property as a location for the Jacob Javits Convention Center, which the city eventually chose in 1978 over two competing sites.
Accusations of Racism
In 1973, Donald and his father found themselves in the spotlight when the federal Department of Justice filed charges against the Trump Organization for systematically discriminating against African Americans seeking to rent apartments. Trump’s defense that they rejected applicants due to low incomes was deemed unconvincing.
The case was settled in 1975 without the Trumps admitting wrongdoing, though they made a concession by informing employees about the Fair Housing Act. They also agreed to educate the community about fair housing practices free of racial discrimination. Trump wrote in his book The Art of the Deal: “In the end, the government couldn’t prove its case, and we ended up making a minor settlement without admitting any guilt.”
Successful Real Estate Developer
Meanwhile, Trump had a vision for significant achievements in real estate. In 1974, he secured the opportunity to purchase one of Penn Central’s hotels, the Commodore, which was unprofitable but located near New York’s Grand Central Station. The following year, he signed a partnership agreement with the Hyatt hotel corporation, which lacked a large hotel in the city center. Trump then navigated a complex deal with the city to renovate the hotel. The renovation cost $70 million. Renamed the Grand Hyatt, the 90-meter, 26-story skyscraper became popular and economically successful, making Trump the most famous and controversial real estate developer in the Big Apple.
In his personal life, Trump always had an eye for beautiful women, particularly those of Eastern European descent. In 1977, he married Czech model Ivana Zelníčková. After the birth of their first of three children, Donald J. Trump Jr., Ivana Trump was appointed Vice President of the Trump Organization, responsible for design. She played an important role in renovating the Commodore. Together, they had two more children: Ivanka and Eric.
Trump Tower and Casino Complexes
In 1979, Trump leased a plot of land on Fifth Avenue in New York, near the famous Tiffany & Company jewelry store, as the location for a massive residential and retail complex valued at $200 million. The 58-story skyscraper was named Trump Tower and opened in 1982. The tower featured a six-story atrium adorned with pink marble and a large indoor waterfall. This luxurious complex attracted prominent retailers and celebrity tenants, earning Trump national attention. Meanwhile, Trump began exploring the profitability of the casino business.
In 1980, he managed to secure ownership rights in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Donald enlisted his younger brother Robert to manage the complex project, which involved acquiring land, obtaining gambling licenses, and securing permits and financing. Holiday Inn Corporation, the parent company of Harrah's casino hotels, offered a partnership, leading to the development of a $250 million complex. It opened in 1984 as Harrah's at Trump Plaza. Trump decided to expand his operations further and purchased the historic Mar-a-Lago estate for $8 million. He later used the estate for professional training sessions and international business meetings before converting it into a resort, in compliance with regulations. During the 1980s, Trump opened a series of casinos, skyscrapers, and hotels along the Atlantic Coast.
Trump bought out Holiday Inn hotels in 1986 and rebranded the property as the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino. He also acquired a casino-hotel from Hilton Hotels in Atlantic City after the company failed to obtain a gambling license. Trump renamed the property Trump Castle, an investment valued at $320 million. Later, during its construction phase, Trump acquired ownership of the world’s largest hotel-casino complex at the time, the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, which opened in 1990. The Trump Taj Mahal featured one of the largest gaming areas in the world, spanning 15,500 square meters, and was also the most expensive casino ever built, costing $1.1 billion.
Expanding Trump’s Business Empire
Expanding his empire southward, Trump launched a residential project in West Palm Beach, Florida. In 1989, he diversified by purchasing Eastern Air Lines Shuttle for $365 million, later renaming it Trump Shuttle. However, the company failed to generate a profit and merged with another firm in 1992. In January 1990, Trump traveled to Los Angeles to unveil a plan for a $1 billion commercial and residential project, including a 125-story skyscraper, but an economic downturn soon disrupted those plans.
In New York City, Trump acquired a residential building and the Barbizon-Plaza Hotel, located near Central Park, with plans to build a major residential complex on the property. However, tenants protected by the city's rent control and housing programs opposed Trump's plans and won the battle. Trump instead renovated the Barbizon, renaming it Trump Parc. In 1985, Trump purchased 76 acres of land on Manhattan's west side for $88 million to build a complex called Television City, which would include a dozen skyscrapers, a shopping center, and a park along the Hudson River. Opposition from critics and delays in securing city permits stalled the project, which was designed to attract television networks. In 1988, Trump bought the Plaza Hotel for $407 million and spent $50 million on renovations under the supervision of his wife Ivana.
Who is Donald Trump?
During the 1980s, polls showed that Trump consistently appeared on the list of the 10 people Americans admired the most. Trump’s strategy for seeking attention was always as successful as it was perhaps transparent.
“I don’t do it for the money. I have enough, much more than I will ever need. I do it to do it. Deals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully on canvas or write magnificent poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals. That’s how I get my kicks,” Trump wrote in 1987. He also invested in sports, organized the USFL football league, and launched Trump University, a school specializing in real estate education.
New Accusations of Racism
Trump again found himself in the spotlight due to racial issues in 1989. A robbery occurred in Central Park in New York when a young woman was attacked and nearly killed by five men. The case made headlines. Five young men, all members of racial minorities (Latino and African American), were arrested. It was later revealed that they gave confessions under coercion. Trump’s response to the tragic case was to purchase an $85,000 full-page ad in newspapers, calling for the return of the death penalty, signed with his name. This move was extremely inflammatory and provocative. The accused men were later exonerated, but Trump insisted they did not deserve their release because they were not “good guys.”
The same year, as a prominent American businessman, he appeared in an interview on NBC, where he claimed that Black people had an advantage and that he would much rather be a young, educated Black man than a white man in America in 1989. This was an exaggeration because the Black population in 1989 did not yet enjoy fully equal conditions in education and employment compared to the white majority.
Business Problems and Changes in Private Life
In 1990, a sudden decline in the real estate market occurred, reducing the value of Trump’s empire. His wealth fell from an estimated $1.7 billion to $500 million. The Trump Organization needed massive loans to stay afloat, which was a dangerous situation threatening bankruptcy. Some observers saw Trump’s decline as a symbolic embodiment of all the economic, business, and social excesses of the 1980s. However, Trump managed to recover, and by 1997, his wealth was estimated to be close to $2 billion.
Trump’s image partially faded due to publicity surrounding his controversial divorce from his wife Ivana. Donald remarried, this time to rising actress Marla Maples. The couple had a daughter, Tiffany, two months before their wedding in 1993. The couple separated in 1997, and their divorce was formally finalized two years later. After his second divorce, Trump began a relationship with Slovenian model Melania Knauss. They married in 2005 at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Among the notable guests at the wedding were Bill and Hillary Clinton. The following year, the couple had a son, Barron.
Entering the Entertainment Industry
In 1996, Trump partnered with NBC to buy the American Miss Universe Organization, which runs beauty pageants – Miss Universe America, Miss USA, and Miss Teen USA. He owned part of the rights to these beauty pageants until 2015. Many real estate dealers paid significant sums for licenses to use Trump’s brand. This changed dramatically when he announced his presidential candidacy in 2015.
In 2004, Trump ventured into television. He leveraged his celebrity status by launching the TV series “The Apprentice”, in which contestants competed to become managers within the Trump Organization. The show quickly became a hit and made Trump’s catchphrase, “You’re fired,” immensely popular. The success of the series, which was nominated for an Emmy Award, led to a spin-off series, “Celebrity Apprentice”, featuring numerous celebrities as contestants, including Lennox Lewis, Dennis Rodman, and Leeza Gibbons, among others.
Despite his image as a ruthless boss, in the real world (privately), Trump is a warm and pleasant person. He personally hired numerous people and gave them more responsibilities and rewards than other employers. Talented young people who joined his companies and proved themselves capable of completing tasks were given increasingly challenging responsibilities and were always richly rewarded for their success. Even in cases of failure, he would give second chances, unlike what was portrayed on the TV series.
The Unshakable Billionaire
At the beginning of the 21st century, Trump began implementing several large hotel and residential projects on a global scale, including Trump World Tower in New York, Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago, Trump Hotel in Las Vegas, and Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida. Projects were also carried out outside the U.S., in Panama City, Rio de Janeiro, Vancouver, and Toronto. In 2016, the American business magazine Forbes ranked Trump as the 324th richest person in the world and the 113th in the U.S., with a net worth of $4.5 billion.
Religiously, Trump is a Christian and was a member of the Protestant Presbyterian Church until 2020, when he declared himself a non-denominational Christian. On one occasion, he cited the Bible as his favorite book, followed by his own “The Art of the Deal.” Trump has authored or co-authored several books. His latest book, “Let’s Save America,” was published this year. In it, he outlines his achievements during his first presidential term from 2017 to 2021 and his plans for a second term, which he claims will lead America into a new era of prosperity.
He has received numerous awards and recognitions. Trump, for instance, earned his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles and was named Time magazine’s Person of the Year in 2016. Although his behavior may suggest that he despises journalists and the media, the opposite is true. Trump loves the media because they provide him with the attention he craves. Before launching his 2015 presidential campaign, Trump would start nearly every day by reviewing where his name appeared in the media. The media are crucial for boosting Trump’s ego.
The Political Chameleon
Trump’s political beliefs can be described as chameleon-like. For most of his life, he was a member or supporter of the Republican Party, but not always. Trump supported Ronald Reagan during the 1980s. He became a registered party member in 1987. In 1988, he considered running for president. However, in 1999, he joined the Reform Party. In October of that year, Trump announced the formation of an exploratory committee to determine whether he would run as the Reform Party’s candidate in the 2000 presidential campaign.
Ultimately, he withdrew due to internal party issues and modest results in the California primaries. However, his political aspirations did not disappear. Between 2001 and 2008, he identified as a Democrat, but in the 2008 presidential election, he supported Republican John McCain. The following year, he returned to the Republican Party and promised in 2011 never to change parties again. Over his life, he has donated to both Republicans and Democrats. In 2012, there was speculation that he would run for president, but Trump withdrew because he believed he had no realistic chance.
Entry into Politics
In June 2015, Trump announced his decision to run for President of the United States. He quickly emerged as one of the frontrunners among the many Republican Party candidates. From the start, he based his campaign on issues such as illegal immigration, outsourcing of jobs, national debt, Islamic terrorism, and redefining foreign policy. He encapsulated his beliefs in the slogan: “Make America Great Again” (MAGA).
At the same time, he launched the “America First” slogan, asserting that in foreign policy, America must primarily look after its own interests, not those of other countries. This concept also involved withdrawing from the numerous wars in which the United States had been entangled. By May 2016, all Republican candidates had dropped out of the race. In July, he was officially nominated as the presidential candidate, with Mike Pence as his running mate for Vice President.
Triumph
Trump based his campaign on the image of an outsider and anti-establishment candidate, adopting populist policies that resonated with conservative and right-leaning American voters, particularly white voters from suburban and rural areas. Despite relentless media and establishment attacks, Trump surprisingly won the election on November 8, 2016. The American people rallied behind a candidate who promised a new and better America.
Interestingly, the American animated TV show The Simpsons had predicted Trump as president back in 2000. From 2017 to 2021, Trump’s first term unfolded with both successes and setbacks, during which he spent a significant amount of time defending himself from accusations of being a Russian agent and colluding with Moscow to win the White House. Other allegations followed, including abuse of power, leading to two impeachment attempts in Congress.
Fall and the Great Comeback
Trump narrowly lost the presidential election on November 3, 2020, under extraordinary circumstances amid the COVID-19 crisis. The elections were marked by many uncertainties and unanswered questions. Allegations of electoral fraud and manipulation would remain forever unresolved.
Although it seemed he would never return to politics as a relevant figure—being banned from all social media—the opposite happened. Despite accusations of orchestrating the January 6, 2021, attack on Capitol Hill, mishandling classified documents, and attempting election fraud, none of this deterred him. Not even two assassination attempts stopped Trump, and he became the Republican presidential candidate in the summer of 2024.
On November 5, he won the election decisively, capturing nearly all swing states and triumphing in the overall popular vote. Trump’s victory was not a surprise, but the significant margin was. While the elections were expected to be extremely close, with the winner unclear for days, Trump won overwhelmingly, and the result was clear on election night.
A Permanent Place in History
As the 45th and 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump has secured his place in history forever. The past, present, and future of Trump’s presidency will determine the final judgment of his character and achievements. However, his life story is unique and unparalleled, as is his political career, which leaves no one indifferent. Trump is either loved or hated—few can remain neutral. He could be succinctly described as: a top businessman, a wealthy man, a controversial figure of good character, and a politician after whom the United States will never be the same. His statement sums it up: “Love him or hate him, Trump is a man who knows what he wants and goes for it—no limits. Women are attracted to his power as much as his money.”
