Origins
Donald John Trump was born on June 14, 1946, in Queens, New York, the fourth of five children of Frederick Christ Trump and Mary Anne MacLeod Trump. His father was a successful real estate developer who built middle-class housing in New York’s outer boroughs. Trump attended the Kew-Forest School before transferring to New York Military Academy at age thirteen, where he completed high school. He studied at Fordham University for two years before transferring to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1968 with a degree in economics. Upon graduation, Trump joined his father’s company, eventually renaming it the Trump Organization and shifting its focus toward luxury properties, casinos, and branding ventures in Manhattan and beyond.
Trump cultivated a public persona through decades of real estate development, licensing deals, and media appearances. His ownership of the Miss Universe pageant and starring role in the reality television series The Apprentice (2004–2015) transformed him into a household name associated with wealth and business acumen. Trump had periodically expressed interest in presidential campaigns dating to the 1980s, but he formally entered politics in June 2015 when he announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination. Running as a political outsider, he defeated sixteen opponents in the primaries, securing the nomination in July 2016. His general election campaign against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton emphasized immigration restriction, trade renegotiation, and criticism of political establishments. Despite losing the popular vote by approximately 2.9 million ballots, Trump won the Electoral College 304 to 227, becoming the first president with neither prior political nor military experience.
Presidency
Trump’s domestic agenda centered on deregulation, judicial appointments, and tax reform. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 represented the most substantial revision of the federal tax code in three decades, reducing corporate tax rates and modifying individual brackets. His administration appointed three Supreme Court justices—Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett—shifting the Court’s ideological composition. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic presented an unprecedented public health crisis; the administration launched Operation Warp Speed, which accelerated vaccine development, while facing criticism regarding federal coordination and messaging. The economic disruption resulted in significant unemployment and required massive federal relief spending, including the CARES Act. The House of Representatives impeached Trump twice: first in December 2019 over dealings with Ukraine, and again in January 2021 following the January 6 Capitol breach. The Senate acquitted him in both trials.
In foreign affairs, the administration pursued an “America First” approach emphasizing bilateral negotiations over multilateral frameworks. Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Paris Climate Agreement, and the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA). He engaged in direct diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, holding unprecedented summits in 2018 and 2019, though no denuclearization agreement materialized. The administration brokered the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations between Israel and several Arab states including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Trade policy focused heavily on China, with tariffs imposed on hundreds of billions of dollars in goods and the eventual signing of a Phase One trade agreement in January 2020.
Historical Significance
Trump left office on January 20, 2021, following his defeat by Joseph R. Biden in the 2020 election. His refusal to concede and claims of electoral fraud culminated in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, an event that prompted his second impeachment and ongoing scholarly debate regarding executive accountability and democratic norms. His successor inherited a nation grappling with pandemic response, economic recovery, and pronounced political polarization. Trump’s judicial appointments continued shaping American jurisprudence, particularly after the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade.
Historical assessments of the Trump presidency remain sharply contested and continue evolving, particularly given his subsequent candidacy in 2024. Scholars debate whether his tenure represented a fundamental departure from post-1945 political conventions or an intensification of existing partisan and populist currents. His communication style, particularly his use of social media, transformed expectations of presidential rhetoric. Evaluations of his economic record, foreign policy realignments, and handling of institutional challenges will likely remain subjects of significant historiographical dispute for decades.
Key Developments
- June 14, 1946: Born in Queens, New York
- 1968: Graduates from Wharton School; joins father’s real estate company
- 1977: Marries Ivana Trump (divorced 1992); later marries Marla Maples (1993–1999) and Melania Knauss (2005–present)
- 2004: Debuts as host of NBC’s The Apprentice
- June 16, 2015: Announces presidential candidacy
- November 8, 2016: Elected forty-fifth president
- January 20, 2017: Inaugurated as president
- December 22, 2017: Signs Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
- June 12, 2018: Holds summit with Kim Jong-un in Singapore
- December 18, 2019: Impeached by House of Representatives (Ukraine matter)
- September 15, 2020: Abraham Accords signed at White House
- January 13, 2021: Impeached second time following Capitol breach
- January 20, 2021: Term concludes; succeeded by Joseph R. Biden