Donald Trump's Biography
He had mixed fortunes as a property tycoon but in his new guise as executive producer and host of The Apprentice, Trump can claim to have been very successful.
The Apprentice had proved a huge ratings hit in the USA and spawned shows elsewhere, for example, the BBC's Apprentice presented by Lord Sugar in the UK.
Donald Trump graduated from the Wharton School of Finance and started business in the construction industry sharing an office with his father.
Trump went on to own some of the most renowned real estate in New York, much of it hosting eponymous buildings, for example, the Fifth Avenue skyscraper, Trump Tower, Trump Parc, Trump Palace, Trump Plaza, The Trump World Tower and Trump Park Avenue.
The Trump Organization is also involved in the gaming area and operates hotels and casinos.
Trump's early autobiographical books, 'The Art of the Deal' and 'Surviving at the Top' reflected his personal financial fortune. The 1990s, however, brought financial troubles, debt and the break up of his marriage to Ivana, whom he had married in 1977.
Donald Trump's second marriage to Marla Maples in 1993 lasted just five years. On January 22, 2005 Donald Trump married again, this time to a Slovenian model, Melania Knauss.
Trump has three children with his first wife, Ivana, one from his second marriage (to Marla Maples), and, in March 2006, Melania Knauss Trump gave birth to a boy, Barron William Trump.
In 2000, Donald Trump was considering standing for Ross Perot's Reform Party. It does not sound as if Trump would have been well suited by the campaign trail. He told NBC:
"I'm not a big fan of the handshake ... I think it's barbaric, shaking hands, you catch colds, you catch the flu, you catch this, you catch all sorts of things."
Donald Trump's first Presidential Campaign
In 2015, Donald Trump announced that he was in the race to become the Republican candidate for President.By December 2015, Donald Trump was ahead in the standings to be the Republican candidate.
His numerous controversial statements included one on 7 December, calling for a halt to Muslims entering the US.
Donald Trump's campaign for Presidency was on a roll, but he did surprisingly badly in the Iowa caucus, the first of the campaign, coming second behind Ted Cruz and only 1.2% ahead of Marco Rubio.
However, Trump bounced back with a huge win in the New Hampshire primary.
By the end of May 2016, Donald Trump had reached the number of delegates needed to secure the Republican party's presidential nomination.
On 19 July 2016, Donald Trump secured the Republican nomination for US president on day two of the Republican National Convention.
Donald Trump won the election on 8 November 2016 to become the 45th President of the USA.
Donald Trump as President
He was inaugurated on 20 January 2017.In September 2019, Nancy Pelosi opened a formal impeachment inquiry into President Trump.
In December 2019, Donald Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives.
On 2 October 2020, it was revealed that Donald Trump had Covid-19.
At the end of 2020, Donald Trump lost the presidential election to Joe Biden, but in the interim period before Biden took over, Trump became the first American President to be impeached twice.
Donald Trump's third Presidential Campaign
In November 2022, Donald Trump announced his third straight presidential bid in spite of being dogged by controversy.On 31 March 2023, it was revealed that Trump was to appear in court having being indicted in New York on charges related to a payment made to former porn star Stormy Daniels.
Various other legal actions followed but they did not seem to dent Trump's popularity in the Republican party.
On 15 January 2024, Donald Trump won a landslide victory in the Iowa caucuses, confirming him as the clear front-runner for the 2024 Republican nomination.
In May 2024, Trump was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records. It was the first time a present or past US president had been convicted of a crime.
On 14 July 2924, Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt in in Pennsylvania.
Donald Trump's Second Term as President
In November 2024, Donald Trump defeated the Democrat candidate Kamala Harris and was elected President of the United States.His inauguration was held on 20 January 2025.
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