The Making of Donald Trump (24 page)

Read The Making of Donald Trump Online

Authors: David Cay Johnston

Tags: #Comedy

2
getting himself arrested at age twenty-one for his involvement in a battle:
Matt Blum, “1927 News Report: Donald Trump’s Dad Arrested in KKK Brawl with Cops.”
Boingboing
, September 9, 2015.
boingboing.​net/​2015/​09/​09/​1927-news-report-donald-trump.​html
.

3
Almost nine decades later, his son Donald, running for President:
Jason Horowitz, “In Interview, Donald
Trump Denies Report of Father’s Arrest in 1927.”
New York Times
, September 22, 2015.

4
During World War II, Fred Trump landed Government contracts for apartments and barracks to be built:
Rozhon, “Fred C. Trump, Postwar Master Builder of Housing for Middle Class. Dies at 93.”

5
He was also something of a showman, displaying the panache:
Rozhon, “Fred C. Trump, Postwar Master Builder of Housing for Middle Class. Dies at 93.”

6
Decades later, of course, Donald Trump would surround himself with models
: “10 Secrets of Fred Trump’s Coney Island Revealed in History Project Exhibit.” Coney Island History Project, May 26, 2016. www.​coney-islandhistory.​org/​blog/​history/​10-​secrets-​fred-​trumps-​coney-​island-​revealed-​history-​project-​exhibit.

7
Years later came a stunt that would appear to be a direct inspiration to his son:
Michael D’Antonio, “Ike Didn’t Like Donald Trump’s Dad.”
Daily Beast
, November 23, 2015.
www.​thedailybeast.​com/​articles/​2015/​11/​23/​ike-​didn-​t-​like-​trump-​s-dad-​at-​all.​html
.

8
Testifying before the Senate Committee on Banking and Currency, Fred Trump insisted:
Hearings before the Committee on Banking and Currency, United States Senate, Eighty-Third Congress, second session, pursuant to S. Res. 229.

9
Taxpayers were not the only source of capital for Fred Trump’s construction projects:
Leonard Buder, “Two with Links to Crime Group Charged by U.S.”
New York Times
, September 11, 1986.

10
Fred Christ Trump was a stern father who expected his sons to learn the family business:
Rozhon, “Fred C. Trump, Postwar Master Builder of Housing for Middle Class. Dies at 93.”

11
As first-born, Fred Jr. was first in line to rise in dad’s business:
Jason Horowitz, “For Donald Trump, Lessons from a Brother’s Suffering.”
New York Times
, January 2, 2016.

12
Meanwhile, Fred Jr. had become a pilot for TWA:
Horowitz, “For Donald Trump, Lessons from a Brother’s Suffering.”

13
With the way now open to becoming next in line in the family business:
Michael Rothman, “Actress Candice Bergen Opens Up About Past ‘Blind Date’ With Donald Trump.”
Abcnews.​go.​com
, February 12, 2016.
abcnews.​go.​com/​Entertainment/​actress-​candice-​bergen-​opens-​past-blind-​date-​donald/​story?id=36892025
.

14
Others have said they don’t recall seeing Trump a lot around campus:
Mark Dent, “Donald Trump, Penn Grad, Is (Barely) Remembered by His Alma Mater: ‘Who Wants to Be Associated with Him?’ ”
Billypenn.​com
, July 30, 2015.
billypenn.​com/​2015/07/​30/donald-​trump-​penn-​grad-is-​barely-​remembered-​by-his-​alma-​mater-​who-​wants-to-​be-​associated-​with-​him/
.

CHAPTER 3. PERSONAL VALUES

1
A violent convicted felon and swindler named Felix Sater:
Charles V. Bagli, “Real Estate Executive with Hand in Trump Projects Rose from Tangled Past.”
New
York Times
, December 17, 2007. Accessed June 20, 2016.
www.​nytimes.​com/​2007/​12/​17/​nyregion/​17trump.​html
.

2
helping Trump make two major development deals in Denver:
John Rebchook, “Trump Looks for Land to Build Hotel, Condos.”
Rocky Mountain News
, July 8, 2006. Accessed June 20, 2016.
www.​denverinfill.​com/​images/​blog/​2006-07/​2006-07-08_​trump_​looks_​for_​land_​to_​build_​hotel_​condos.​pdf
.

3
Trump and Sater gave interviews to the
Rocky Mountain News
: John Rebchook, “Trump Thinking Big for Denver.”
Rocky Mountain News
, September 15, 2005. Accessed June 20, 2016.
www.​highbeam.​com/​doc/​1G1-​136190082.​html
.

4
He ripped into the location and functionality of the Denver International Airport:
Andy Vuong, “The World According to Trump.”
Denver Post
, September 15, 2005.

5
described her as “ugly as a dog”:
Christine Steele, “Trump Talks Frankly for Front Range.”
Daily Reporter-Herald
(Loveland, CO), September 15, 2005.

6
“I love losers because they make me feel good about myself”:
Tony Kindelspire, “ ‘The Donald’ Makes an Appearance at Loveland Bixpo.”
Daily Times-Call
(Longmont, CO), September 15, 2005.

7
three dollars rather than the “feaking fortune” paid to Trump:
Vuong, “The World According to Trump.”

8
“because they are gonna try to fleece you”:
Tom Hacker, “Trump’s Bixpo Show Offends—but It’s Show Biz.”
Biz West
, September 30, 2005. Accessed June 20,
2016.
bizwest.​com/​trumps-​bixpo-​show-​offends-​but-​its-​show-​biz/
.

9
Trump has been a party in more than 3,500 lawsuits:
Nick Panzenstadler and Susan Page, “Exclusive: Trump’s 3,500 Lawsuits Unprecedented for a Presidential Nominee.” USA
Today
, June 2, 2016. Accessed June 5, 2016. www.​usatoday.​com/​story/​news/​politics/​elections/​2016/​06/01/​donald-​trump-​lawsuits-​legal-​battles/​84995-854/.

10
“Boy, do I feel good” … “I always get even” … “She bought a beautiful home” … “ ‘Donald, I can’t do that’ ” … “I was really happy when I found that out”:
Hacker, “Trump’s Bixpo Show Offends—but It’s Show Biz.”

11
Rosie O’Donnell, who described him as “a snake-oil salesman”:
Cady Drell, “A Brief History of Donald Trump and Rosie O’Donnell.”
Newsweek
, August 6, 2015. Accessed June 8, 2016.
www.​newsweek.​com/​behind-​donald-​trumps-​sexist-​debate-​comment-​rosie-​odonnell-​pigs-​fat-​view-​360701
.

12
and later (on television) “disgusting inside and out”:
Donald Trump and Bill Zanker,
Think Big: Make It Happen in Business and Life
(New York: HarperCollins, 2009), p. 188.

13
He made disparaging remarks about her looks, weight, and sexuality:
Trump and Zanker,
Think Big
, p. 189.

14
“You’ve got to hit a bully really hard really strongly, right between the eyes”:
Trump and Zanker,
Think Big
, p. 190.

15
“Attack them in spades”:
Trump and Zanker,
Think Big
, p. 194.

16
“No one reads the Bible more than I do”:
Jesse Byrnes, “Trump: Kerry Probably Hasn’t Read the Bible.”
The Hill
, February 24, 2016. Accessed June 6, 2016.
thehill.​com/​blogs/​blog-​briefing-​room/​news/​270610-​trump-​kerry-​probably-​hasnt-​read-​the-​bible
.

17
He says
The Art of the Deal
is the greatest book ever written except for the Bible:
Blake Hounshell, “Trump Bungles Bible Reference at Liberty University.”
Politico
, January 18, 2016. Accessed June 20, 2016.
www.​politico.​com/​story/​2016/​01/​trump-​liberty-​university-​bible-​217938
.

18
He has never been able to recite a biblical verse:
Eugene Scott, “Trump Says Bible Is His Favorite Book but Declines to Share Favorite Verse.” CNN, August 27, 2015. Accessed June 6, 2016.
www.​cnn.​com/​2015/​08/27/​politics/​donald-​trump-​favorite-​bible-​verses/
.

19
Trump told Bob Lonsberry, a radio host in Rochester, New York, that he was religious:
“Bob Lonsberry Talks with Donald Trump.”
WHAM1180.​iheart.​com
, April 14, 2016. Accessed June 26, 2016.
wham1180.​iheart.​com/​onair/​bob-​lonsberry-​3440/​bob-​lonsberry-​talks-​with-​donald-​trump-​14604930/
.

20
“Well, I think many … we can learn a lot from the Bible, that I can tell you”:
“Bob Lonsberry Talks with Donald Trump.”
WHAM1180.​iheart.​com
, April 14, 2016. Accessed June 26, 2016.
wham1180.​iheart.​com/​onair/​bob-​lonsberry-​3440/​bob-​lonsberry-​talks-​with-​donald-​trump-​14604930/
.

21
“My motto is:
Always get even”: Trump and Zanker,
Think Big
, p. 183.

22
“If you don’t get even, you are just a schmuck! I really mean it, too”:
Trump and Zanker,
Think Big
, p. 190.

CHAPTER 4. A SICKLY CHILD

1
Two of Donald Trump’s mottos, “Always get even” and “Hit harder”:
Jason Horowitz, “For Donald Trump, Lessons From a Brother’s Suffering.”
New York Times
, January 2, 2016.

2
A letter from a Trump family lawyer instructed Precise:
Heidi Evans, “Inside Trump’s Bitter Battle; Nephew’s Ailing Baby Caught in the Middle.”
New York Daily News
, December 19, 2000.

3
Fred Trump Senior had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 1993:
Tracie Rozhon, “Fred C. Trump, Postwar Master Builder of Housing for Middle Class. Dies at 93.” New
York Times
, June 26, 1999.

4
Fred Sr.’s lawyer had drawn attention to the potential for litigation over the estate:
Evans, “Inside Trump’s Bitter Battle; Nephew’s Ailing Baby Caught in the Middle.”

5
The lawyer asked Fred Sr. to fill out a routine estate planning form that described his intentions:
Evans, “Inside Trump’s Bitter Battle; Nephew’s Ailing Baby Caught in the Middle.”

6
she “burst out into tears” on learning her sickly son was in jeopardy:
Evans, “Inside Trump’s Bitter Battle; Nephew’s Ailing Baby Caught in the Middle.”

7
A judge signed an order directing the medical coverage continue until the matter could be resolved:
Linda C. Trump, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al. No. 6795/00. Supreme Court, State of New York.

8
Donald said he was doing nothing but carrying out the wishes of his father:
Evans, “Inside Trump’s Bitter Battle; Nephew’s Ailing Baby Caught in the Middle.”

9
Maryanne Trump Barry weighed in, too:
Linda C. Trump, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al. No. 6795/00. Supreme Court, State of New York.

10
Years later, while seeking the Republican presidential nomination:
Ray Nothstine, “Donald Trump: ‘I’m Not Sure If I Ever Asked God’s Forgiveness.’ ”
Christian Post
, July 20, 2015.
www.​christianpost.​com/​news/​donald-​trump-​im-​not-​sure-​if-​i-ever-​asked-​gods-​forgiveness-​141706/
.

11
Trump said his pique at the challenge to his father’s will motivated the termination:
Jason Horowitz, “For Donald Trump, Lessons From a Brother’s Suffering.”
New York Times
, January 2, 2016.

CHAPTER 5. MAKING FRIENDS

1
Trump has boasted often that he was on the hunt “almost every night”:
Donald Trump and Tony Schwartz,
Trump: The Art of the Deal
(New York: Ballantine, 2015), p. 97.

2
By Trump’s account, Cohn became a business mentor and nearly a second father to him:
Michael Kruse, “ ‘He Brutalized For You.’ ”
Politico
. N.p., April 8, 2016. Web. June 16, 2016.

3
It also ensnared Trump in a jewelry tax scam and in a lawsuit:
William Bastone, “The Bulgari Sales Tax Scam.”
Village Voice
, November 25, 1986. Accessed June 20, 2016.

4
In Cohn, Trump had someone who could be “vicious” on his behalf:
Kruse, “ ‘He Brutalized For You.’ ”

5
Then he set out to join Le Club, which Trump regarded as “the hottest club in the city”:
Anthony Haden, “Donald Trump’s Nights Out with Roy Cohn.”
Daily Beast
, N.p., January 30, 2016. Web. June 5, 2016.

6
“I don’t kid myself about Roy”:
Trump and Schwartz,
Trump: The Art of the Deal
, p. 99.

7
Fred Trump had faced similar accusations two decades earlier, both from the government and from legendary folk singer Woody Guthrie:
Michael D’Antonio, “Ike Didn’t Like Donald Trump’s Dad.”
Daily Beast
, N.p., November 23, 2015. Web. June 7, 2016.

8
Guthrie had moved into an apartment at Beach Haven, Fred Trump’s first major housing project, in 1950:
William Kaufman, “Woody Guthrie, ‘Old Man Trump’ and a Real Estate Empire’s Racist Foundations.”
The Conversation
, January 21, 2016. Accessed June 5, 2016. the-conversation.​com/​woody-​guthrie-​old-​man-​trump-​and-​a-​real-estate-​empires-​racist-​foundations-​53026.

9
At Trump’s Shore Haven apartments, the superintendent told a white woman:
Gideon Resnick, “DOJ: Trump’s Early Businesses Blocked Blacks.”
Daily Beast
, December 15, 2015. Accessed June 8, 2016.

10
The Justice Department sued Donald Trump, his father
,
and Trump Management:
Morris Kaplan, “Major Landlord Accused of Antiblack Bias in City.”
New York Times
, October 16, 1973. Accessed June 8, 2016.

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