From the desk of Jan Hommel, Museum Director:

Today in History: January 20, 2017
Donald John Trump
Inaugurated as the 45^th President of the United States

Born: 6/14/1946
Birthplace: Queens, New York
Religion: Protestant
Education: Graduated from University of Pennsylvania (1968)
Occupation: Businessman, Real Estate Developer
Political Party: Republican
Other Government Positions: None

Donald John Trump was born on June 14, 1946, in Queens, New York, and was the fourth of five children of Frederick C. and Mary MacLeod Trump. Trump’s older brother, Fred, Jr., died in 1981 from alcoholism, which Trump says led him to abstain from alcohol and cigarettes. His father was a builder and real estate developer who specialized in constructing and operating middle-income apartments in New York City. Donald was an energetic, assertive child, and his parents sent him to the New York Military Academy at 13, hoping the discipline of the school would channel his energy in a constructive manner.

Trump did well at the academy both socially and academically, rising to become a star athlete and student leader by the time he graduated in 1964. He then entered Fordham University and two years later transferred to the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated in 1968 with a degree in Economics.

Trump followed his father into a career in real estate development, bringing his ambitions to the family business. As a student, Trump worked with his father during the summer and then after graduation from college joined his father’s company, Elizabeth Trump & Son. In 1971, Donald Trump was given control of the company, which he later renamed the Trump Organization. He also moved his residence to Manhattan where he began to make important connections with influential people. Convinced of the city’s economic opportunity, Trump soon became involved in large building projects in Manhattan using attractive architectural design that would offer opportunities for earning high profits.

During his business career, Trump built, renovated and managed numerous office towers, hotels, casinos and golf courses. He owned the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants from 1996 to 2015 and has lent the use of his name in the branding of various products. From 2004 to 2015, he hosted The Apprentice, a reality television show on NBC.

On October 7, 1999, Trump announced the formation of an exploratory committee to determine whether or not to seek the Reform Party’s nomination for the presidential race of 2000. However, after a poor showing during the California primary, Trump withdrew his candidacy. It would not quell his political aspirations, however. He considered running as a Republican for the 2012 election but, ultimately, decided against it.

On June 16, 2015, Trump made his White House ambitions official when he announced his run for president on the Republican ticket for the 2016 election, joining a crowded field of seventeen major candidates.

“I am officially running for President of the United States,” Trump said during his announcement at Trump Tower in New York City. “And we are going to make our country great again.”  “Make America great again” would soon become the slogan of the campaign.

After defeating his republican primary opponents, he was formally nominated at the Republican Convention in Cleveland along with Mike Pence, Governor of Indiana, as his running mate. In one of the longest acceptance speeches in recent history, Trump outlined the issues he would tackle as president including violence in America, the economy, immigration, trade, terrorism and the appointment of Supreme Court Justices. His campaign received unprecedented media coverage and international attention.

After one of the most contentious presidential campaigns in U.S. history and in a stunning victory that defied polls and the media, Trump won the majority of electoral college votes over Democratic rival Hillary Clinton and was elected the forty-fifth president of the United States on November 8, 2016. Trump’s surprising rise to the office of president was considered a resounding rejection of globalist and establishment politics by blue-collar and working class Americans. At age 70, he is the oldest and wealthiest person to assume the presidency, the first without prior military or governmental service, and the fifth with less than a plurality of the national popular vote.

Trump’s platform emphasized renegotiating existing trade agreements, enforcing immigration laws and border security, strengthening energy independence, reforming veterans’ affairs, repealing the Affordable Care Act, abolishing Common Core education standards, investing in infrastructure, simplifying the Internal Revenue Code while reducing taxes across the board, and imposing tariffs on imports by companies offshoring jobs. He advocates a largely non-interventionist approach to foreign policy while increasing military spending, “extreme vetting” of  immigrants to preempt domestic Islamic terrorism, and aggressive military action against ISIS. His positions have been described by scholars and commentators as populist, protectionist and nationalist.

Trump married his wife Melania after his divorces from Ivana Zelnickova and Marla Maples. The children from his first marriage with Ivana are Donald, Jr.; Ivanka; and Eric. He has a daughter Tiffany with Marla and a son Barron with his wife Melania.

Be sure to visit the American Freedom Museum to see artifacts from different presidencies and to check out the new Donald Trump portion of the presidential exhibit (opening on Wednesday, January 25). The American Freedom Museum is open to the public on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.